


Together. Always.

by Musikenza



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Fix-It
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-27
Updated: 2017-09-22
Packaged: 2018-12-12 22:37:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 28
Words: 100,989
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11746611
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Musikenza/pseuds/Musikenza
Summary: Just a fix it fic for season two that helped me deal with that complete piece of shit.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't want to overload everyone when first releasing so here are the first five chapters. I'll be releasing one a day until we're done!

The first time she met Lena Luthor was in the presence of her cousin, Kal-El, under the terms of work. She may not have been a reporter but she tagged along to see him at work. She never got to see him so any time she could spend with him, she would.

There was obvious tension between her cousin and Ms. Luthor due to her familial relation to Lex, a man who had not once made life easy for Kal. Of course, Lena knew him as Clark Kent and knew nothing of Kara.

Kal had thrown her weird looks, whenever Lena Luthor was not looking, that she did not quite understand. Maybe Kal heard it too. She wanted to ask him if Lena’s heartbeat should have been that loud but she didn’t get the chance. He strode out of the L-Corp building, a smidge ahead of her. “So, Ms. Luthor seems to have taken quite an interest in you.”

“What?”

“She barely even noticed I was there.” Kara grabbed Kal’s arm and twisted him around, laughing uncomfortably. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. You were the one asking all the questions.

Kal mussed her hair. She hated when he did that. She technically was older than him and it always made her feel like a child. “So innocent, Kara.”

He started walking away. Kara shook her head in confusion and called after him, dashing up the sidewalk after her cousin. “You can’t just say something like that and not explain!”

Supergirl started to see Lena Luthor frequently. The woman was constantly under attack from some unknown threat. After the initial plane threat that Ms. Luthor had avoided, someone almost blew her helicopter out of the sky. They set off bombs at a press conference. Supergirl was always there. But if Lena Luthor was anything she was resilient and stubborn, yet always grateful.

Lena chalked it up to some crazy business competition. Kara chalked it up to Lex or Lillian or something much more sinister.

Clark’s article came out and to Kara’s relief, was in support of L-Corp instead of dragging the Luthor name through the mud. It was when they went back to L-Corp and Lena, a woman she hardly knew nudged her the final step into becoming a reporter, that she found out what Kal was getting at the first time. Kara had accompanied him and he again made a stupid comment that he wouldn’t explain and mocked Lena, “I hope this isn’t the last time we talk.”

He chuckled after the bad impression of her and Kara punched him on the arm. “Don’t be rude.”

His eyes widened and an annoying smile crossed his face. “Miss Danvers.”

“Kal, if you aren’t going to tell me why you’re making fun of her, then I’d prefer it if you stopped talking altogether,” Kara said, shoving past him.

“Oh, I didn’t know my little cousin was that fiery.”

“I’m older than you!” she yelled. His laughter was soft but she could still hear it. She readjusted her bag as he followed her. “Kal, I’m serious. What’s your point?”

He finally stopped walking to address her. “I’m only saying that Lena Luthor seems to have taken a liking to you.”

“You’re the one who wrote the article. She was thanking you. She was extremely appreciative.”

Kal laughed. “Well, she didn’t tell me I should be a reporter.”

Kara was exasperated. “You already are one!”

Kal continued on like he hadn’t heard her, “And I definitely wasn’t the one she cared to see again.

He stuck a finger out very close to her nose. If he had even thought about booping it, she would have tackled him right there in the middle of the street. “That was all you.”

She swatted Kal’s hand away, making him laugh again. That was one nice thing about her cousin. When things were important, he took them very seriously but it was never hard for her to make him smile or laugh when they were together, not that that was often. He was a lot more easy-going than people expected him to be. “And you should have seen your face: all doe-eyed and dopey smile.”

Kara hoped that was not the impression she had left on Ms. Luthor. Not that she was likely to see her again; her only excuse was Clark Kent and he would eventually return to Metropolis.

Kal’s smile faltered. “Just keep an eye out, Kara.”

“You just wrote an article about how Ms. Luthor was doing good and now you’re back to thinking she’s a bad person?”

Clark shook his head. “No, no, I meant specifically you. Ms. Luthor knows how to get what she wants. Make sure it’s what you want.”

Kara paused, finally understanding his cryptic statements. She wasn’t sure why he couldn’t have said it clearly the first time to avoid the back and forth. “Wait…so you’re saying…”

“Now it clicked.”

Kara’s face scrunched up. “No way. I only just met her. I’m not – I don’t even know –“

Kal’s phone rang and he retrieved it from his pocket. “Sorry, Kara. This is Lois. I have to take it.”

He walked a couple feet away for privacy sake, leaving Kara to stew over the new information.

 

Contrary to what she had thought, Kara began to see a lot of Lena Luthor. When she had gone to Ms. Grant with her decision, the pieces had fallen into place immediately. Snapper Carr had put her strictly on L-Corp duty. It frustrated her because he thought of them as fluff pieces. He still didn’t trust her as a reporter. On the other hand, she didn’t mind because she liked Lena Luthor.

But then, Lena started asking to see Kara and Clark’s words came to the forefront of her mind. Kara had free reign of the L-Corp building, at least of Lena’s office. Lena read her articles. “I knew you would be a great reporter.”

Lena’s heart was loud again. Kara beamed. Cat Grant was the only one to ever have that sentiment and she never actually voiced it in those words. She became quite friendly with Lena. It helped that Snapper was continuously sending her to L-Corp but she started bringing lunch and they would eat and talk together after Kara had asked the questions she needed to. Kara felt like she was always asking Lena for favors but Lena never came up short. Roulette was the biggest and in the end, they still couldn’t contain her.

She called Kal. She told him about Lena and how supportive she was being because, after their last conversation, she thought maybe he could help her. Of course, that was wishful thinking and there was more teasing than anything. “Someone seems to like the attention.”

“She’s my friend, Kal! She’s just being nice.”

“Mmmhmmm,” was all he said.

Kara groaned, her shoulders falling. “I don’t know what to do.”

He didn’t say anything outright for a moment and then, “Lena seems to come from a different mold, Kara. I’m trying to see that. It’s weird for me, knowing you’re spending time with someone from the Luthor family. But, I don’t worry about you around her.’

Kara wanted to ask Alex but when her sister originally found but she was meeting with Lena Luthor so often, Alex had warned her against anyone named Luthor. She tried to reason with her and explain that even Kal thought differently about her but Alex didn’t have a great opinion of Kal to begin with, so that tactic didn’t succeed.

J’onn had backed up his agent. They asked her to keep her guard up, not to give anything away. To be careful. Kara huffed at them whenever they brought it up because she was always careful. She knew how important the Supergirl secret was. They seemed to think she went around telling everyone. She considered Lena a friend or at least she considered them on the path to friendship but she was not planning on blabbing. Sometimes she thought the CEO would have nothing to do with her if Kara wasn’t helping boost L-Corp’s reputation.

Getting to know Lena wasn’t easy but the rest of it was. She went for work and they ended up on Lena’s couch, talking about less important things and eating lunch. Lena let her know very little about her family but the information Kara did become privy too was enough to make her question everyone’s determination to distrust Lena. And she never pushed; she didn’t think Lena’s heart could take it. Lena had two different reactions whenever she mentioned her family: either her heart started beating rapidly, faster than any human heart should, or it slowed to almost nothing, which Kara found much scarier.

Lena’s heart confused Kara most of the time. It got erratic at the most random times or it would skip beats here and there. But nothing ever showed on Lena’s face except smiling eyes, a charming smile, or a small laugh. She seemed perfectly healthy. Kara tried to stop listening. She listened and learned the heartbeats of the people closest to her but Lena’s was hard to ignore. It was loud in her ears.

Some of the visits lasted ten minutes but they started getting longer and longer until Lena would say, “How long does CatCo give you for lunch?” and Kara would apologize for taking up so much of Lena’s time and rush out of the door and back to work. No matter how long they were, they took Kara’s mind off the rest of her life. Snapper Carr’s biting insults disappeared. The open wound of Cat Grant’s leaving numbed. She could forget about the struggle of getting Mon-El adjusted to Earth because he wasn’t adjusting and he was resolute in making it extremely complicated. Catching him in a compromising position in a storage closet at CatCo with Eve had almost resulted in her throwing him out the window. She refrained because she knew it was only the result of her frustration.

Kal’s words tugged at the back of her mind. Kara was starting to question her relationship with Lena.

 

Kara always went to Lena. It felt like an unspoken rule.

Until Lena broke it, startling Kara by showing up to CatCo. Aside from defending Lena to everyone whenever they tried to group her in with her family, she had kept their budding friendship quiet. No one was ready to believe Lena’s innocence let alone accept her friendship with Kara.

Lena looked out of place and a little uncomfortable but she still smiled when she saw Kara. She always smiled when she saw Kara. And with that smile, her heart skipped in the way that concerned Kara. Kara did a double take. “Lena! Surprise visit to CatCo?”

As far as Kara knew, Lena had never once before set foot in the building. Kara could see people pretending to do their work as the CEO of L-Corp walked through their office and picked out the assistant turned reporter. “No, I’m here to see you actually.”

“You are?” Kara responded and from that moment on she sort of nodded and stumbled through responses. She briefly remembered interrupting Mon-El when he tried to talk because Lena was not there for him. Lena was at CatCo specifically for Kara.

Kara grabbed onto the side of the desk. Her brain was overloading with processing when Lena said, “You are literally my only friend in National City.”

Lena shyly biting her lip broke the trance and Kara realized she needed to give the woman an answer. “Of course, I’ll come. I’m honored.”

There was a pause where they both smiled at each other. Kara’s heart was beating hard against her chest and Lena’s was stuttering. Kara forgot Mon-El was there until he invited himself. It caught Kara off guard and the word fell from her mouth, “No.”

Lena looked at them, not seeming too put off by the change of plans. “No, of course your friend can come.”

Kara grimaced and looked at her shoes. "Friend" might have been a stretch. More like the child she had to drag around and keep from ruining everything. And there was a part of her that didn’t want him near Lena. “I’ll see you there.”

Kara let out a breath of air, a laugh of discomfort, and couldn’t do anything but smile because Lena was walking away and Mon-El had a huge grin on his face. She stuttered out a quiet, “Bye,” that Lena could not hear.

Mon-El was twirling a Red Vine and when Lena was finally out of view, Kara gritted her teeth and grabbed at the red candy. It was pulverized in her hand.

 

Alex was sitting across the counter from Kara when there was a knock at the door. Kara slid her glasses down her nose to look and her forehead wrinkled when she saw the woman on the other side. Alex pointed. “Crinkle. What is it?”

Kara ignored her and scooted off her chair. “What is she doing here?”

She opened the door to reveal a smiling Lena. “Hello, Kara.”

Kara stepped out of the way and with a bright voice said, “Lena, come on in.”

Lena did just that. “I’m sorry to keep dropping in on you“ - Lena paused, her eyes finding the other woman in the room - “Hey, I know you. You saved my life.”

Alex gave a curt nod. “I think it may have been the other way around.

With the look on Alex’s face, Kara knew she was going to have some explaining to do as to why Lena Luthor was showing up at her apartment. To be fair, Kara hadn't known that Lena knew where she lived so it was equally as surprising to her. She looked at the two, sensing tension. “Um, she’s my sister.”

The sour expression immediately left Lena’s face and Alex spoke up, “Special agent, Alex Danvers, FBI.”

Alex stood out of politeness but the women did not shake hands. Lena looked back to Kara. “Ah, well, this city’s smaller than I thought.”

There was silence. No one knew who should speak next but Lena took up the torch. “Kara, remember the fight club? Now it’s my turn to ask for a favor. I need to get in touch with Supergirl.”

It was unexpected. It was the first time Kara and Supergirl were crossing paths concerning Lena Luthor. According to Alex, it was dangerous. It had happened with Cat Grant and that had taken J’onn’s shape-shifting abilities to overcome and she still was not sure Cat Grant believed her lie. But Kara would never leave Lena without help.

As soon as Kara filled her in on why Lena had wanted to see Supergirl, Alex immediately started in on how it wasn’t a good idea and Supergirl should not be helping a Luthor. Kara had gotten out of the “why was Lena Luthor at your apartment” questioning, but this was just as bad. Kara let her run out of things to say because there was no point trying to stop her before she was finished. Everything she said, Kara had already heard. Alex took a deep breath when she was finished, looking at Kara.

“I already told her I would be there. I couldn’t say no to offering Supergirl’s protection. It’s a done deal. I keep my word. I’ll take Winn" - she waved her hand around with no particular meaning - “He can help me with the switching back and forth. Anyway, somehow Mon-El got himself invited and we can’t very well let him go without a guardian.”

Alex pursed her lips in the way Alex always pursed her lips when she disliked something. “Alex, with the way she’s been targeted, we should be offering her our protection. I’m doing what I think is right. Protecting the people of this city. Lena is one of those people.”

 

Mon-El did what he was told: arrived in a suit. He might have used poor Eve’s credit card to get it, which Kara berated him for, but it was his first sign of an actual attempt to fit in.

Kara saw Lena almost as soon as she walked in. The woman was hard to miss. Her hair was pulled back into a tight bun and she had on a collared, sleeveless dress. Lena turned, smiling at her. “Kara, it’s great to see you. I’m glad you could come.”

A waiter passed them, holding a tray that caught Kara’s attention. Her mouth fell open. “Are those potstickers?”

Lena stopped the waiter. “Well, this does seem to be your food of choice. You once ate them for lunch for an entire week” – Lena looked slightly concerned at that fact – “And, since you said you were coming, well, these things can be quite tedious. It was my little way of thanking you.”

“Lena, you didn’t have to,” but Kara had already shoved one into her mouth and was grabbing another three off the tray. Lena’s eyebrows were raised as she watched and it was too late when Kara realized that shoving one’s face with potstickers at a fancy gala was probably not up to etiquette. With her mouth full she mumbled, “Sswwry.”

She swallowed as quickly as she could and Lena chuckled, pointing behind Kara. “Your friend, Mike, is it? He seems to be trying to get your attention.”

Lena waved him over and Kara plastered a smile on her face just in time. Mon-El hopped over. “I haven’t been to a party in a really long time. This is great. Thanks for inviting me.”

Kara cocked her head. “I’m not sure she really –“

He was looking around the crowd. “I miss dancing. I used to dance a lot on Da –“

“Where you lived before?” Kara interrupted. Mon-El hadn’t gotten the whole thing about keeping secrets yet. He took a deep breath. “Yes, yes, exactly. We should dance.”

“Oh,” Kara said, “Um, well, I’m kinda talking to Lena –“

He took her hand anyway. “No, I insist.”

Lena’s smile was coming up short. “It’s alright, Kara. Dance with your friend. I have some people I haven’t yet greeted.”

Mon-El was already pulling her to the dance floor but she was looking over her shoulder. “But, uh…”

She trailed off when Lena walked away. At first, she pushed him away, refusing to actually dance. “Mon-El, that was extremely rude.”

“What? She said you could dance with me." He sounded like he didn’t actually know he had done anything wrong. “And Daxam and Krypton were not so different. I know there was a lot of dancing there too.”

“There was,” Kara admitted.

“Soooo…” He waggled his eyebrows.

“Fine!” she said, taking his hand, “One dance. One dance, Mon-El. And then I really have to get back to Lena.”

She had long enough to hear James, who had shown up unexpectedly, and Winn whispering, trying to figure out if she liked Mon-El to which she grimaced. But that was all because, of course, the party didn’t go to plan.

Kara never made it back to Lena. An explosion interrupted them halfway through the song. When the attack started, Kara took cover to become Supergirl. She looked around but couldn’t find Lena anywhere. People were screaming as three men began shooting. Mon-El had been utterly useless though they hadn’t started his training so she didn’t entirely blame him for that. James tried to step in to help but Supergirl had to come to his rescue. They were cornered but then there was a blast and the weapons were knocked out of the men’s hands and destroyed by an invisible force. Supergirl stood up, helping James to his feet. Mon-El was walking around, looking dazed.

But still, she couldn’t find Lena anywhere and she started thinking the worst had happened. There were too many frightened hearts to pick out one.

Then, she noticed Winn climbing out from under the stage. Lena following behind and Supergirl felt her heart stutter in a peculiar way. The first thought that came to her mind should not have been important but there it was, nagging at her, exacerbating everything she had been thinking about since Kal decided to ruin her life with the information that he thought Lena Luthor was interested in her.

She wasn’t alone, everyone was staring at the two. Lena was patting off her dress when she met Supergirl’s narrowed eyes. Of course, Lena looked confused by Supergirl’s expression but Kara didn’t really care at that moment. Winn could see her expression and that was enough. He stuttered, “Oh, no…we - we weren’t…under there…”

Winn gave Supergirl a thumbs up and smiled. “We stopped it.”

Supergirl directed a smile at Lena and shook off the feeling that was making her itch.

 

Supergirl soon found out that the party going awry had been Lena’s goal the whole time. She smiled, endearingly. She was worried for Lena’s safety but she was also proud. She could have thought of a much better way to go about it, but Lena was trying to help and she succeeded. “You like to take risks, don’t you, Ms. Luthor?”

They were walking in from the balcony to Lena’s office. “Why didn’t you tell me what you were up to?”

“I doubt you would’ve believed a Luthor wanted to see justice done.” Lena smiled and chuckled but there was sadness behind the words.

There was no doubt in Kara’s mind. “I do.”

Lena looked surprised but composed herself quickly. Kara might have asked more questions, found out where Lena’s reactions stemmed from but Supergirl couldn’t. She resisted the urge to reach out and touch Lena, comfort her in some way. It would have been much easier, much more explainable as Kara. “I couldn’t have stopped them without you. Thank you.”

Lena was all smiles, ridding herself of the sadness Kara had seen before. “Who would’ve believed it? A Luthor and a Super, working together?”

Lena cocked her eyebrow. “I hope we can work more together in the future.”

Supergirl had not forgotten that Lena, at one point, had a working alien detection device. At first, it had hurt. She thought she was winning Lena over but then she showed Kara the new technology and Kara felt something twist in her gut. But she listened to Lena’s explanation and though she hated the device, she had to respect that Lena’s only intentions were to keep people safe from the aliens that were not so safe. The technology was worrisome for the innocent aliens but humans had the same problems with their own weapons. And Lena’s design wasn’t even a weapon. Besides, aliens weren’t the only problem. The men at the gala had been very human.

There had been one too many attempts on Lena’s life by humans for Kara’s liking. One attempt on Lena’s life had been one too many. One attempt on anyone’s life was one too many and though that was true, it was still a justification for her feelings about Lena. Her brain was spiraling into some unknown area that she was not ready to think about. She had enough on her plate.

Even if Lena was worried about dangerous aliens, Lena didn’t think Supergirl was terrible. She wanted and appreciated Supergirl’s help. She wanted to “work more together in the future.” Whatever Alex and J’onn and the rest of the world thought, Kara didn’t see it.

 


	2. Chapter 2

Alex, James and Winn were crowded around the dining room table. For some reason, every single game night started out with charades and currently Winn was standing up doing a very bad impression of something that no one could figure out. James shook his head as the buzzer went off. Winn yelled, “Oh, man! Come on, this was easy.”

“Winn, you were jumping around doing nothing,” James said with an incredulous stare. Winn fell on the couch, defeated.

Kara cheered alongside Alex. “Another win for the Danvers sisters! What is that? Three game nights in a row?”

“It’s unfair that you two are partners,” Winn commented. Alex just shrugged and Kara stuck her tongue out at him. Winn returned the favor. “Next time, you two don’t get to partner. We’re switching it up.”

“You and Lucy used to win every single time! No one complained about that,” Kara remembered.

James laughed. “Uh, yeah, you did.”

“Whatever. I miss her. I wish she could come to game night.”

“Did you ask her?” Alex questioned.

“Yeah, I text her every time. She just says she’s busy.”

 James sighed. “I think that’s probably my fault. She doesn’t want to come if I’m here.”

“That’s ridiculous,” Winn said, “You guys are totally fine with each other.”

“Sort of. But things are still a little awkward and that’s not fair to anyone else. We haven’t really talked much since everything that went down last year. She’s not mad at anyone but she would come if she knew I wasn’t coming. I can do that next time. Not come, I mean, if you want her to be here.”

His offer was coming from the best place but the whole situation sounded immature. Kara scoffed. “Of course not, James! The point would be to have _everyone_ here.”

Kara looked at Alex. “Have you talked to her recently?”

“She’s my boss, so…”

“You know what I meant, Alex.” Kara rolled her eyes.

“No, not really.” Alex turned her attention away from Kara and boxed up the cards.

James clapped his hands. “So, what’s next?”

Kara yawned. James chuckled. “Or not next.”

“Do you guys think we could cut game night early?”

“Fine with me,” Winn said. “We probably would’ve ended up playing Settlers again and Alex always gets so mad during that game.”

“Games should not be that involved," Alex grumbled.

Kara jumped off the couch. “To make up for it, we’ll have a movie night this weekend.”

“As long as someone else gets to pick the movie.”

Kara pouted.

“I can only do so many movie musicals in a row,” James explained.

Kara was still frowning but agreed to his condition. “I’ll get the food then.”

“Yes!” Winn groaned, patting his stomach. “I am going to be fed so well.”

“Not unless she eats it first,” Alex pointed out.

Alex stayed after Winn and James left.

“You can sleep over if you want,” Kara proposed.

Alex stared at her for a second. “I’m weighing sleeping on the couch versus you pushing me off the bed.”

Kara swatted at her but she ducked. “I can’t help that I’m long.”

“You did it when we were little too. I think you’re just rude,” Alex said, already losing her composure and laughing. Kara tossed a pillow at her head and Alex was too caught up to duck. It hit its mark. “Oooof.”

“You know what we should do?” Kara called from her bedroom.

“Call Lucy?”

Kara poked her head around the corner. “How did you guess that?”

“You’re my sister and you’re really easy to read.”

“You couldn’t even see me.”

“You know I did a lot of behavioral training. Your voice cues stand out. And besides, I just know you.” Alex smiled. Kara jumped onto the couch next to her and pulled out her phone, turning it sideways for a video call.

“Don’t you think you should warn her first?” Alex asked but Kara disagreed. “That takes away the element of surprise.

Alex shook her head, not even trying to stop Kara who went right along and called Lucy.

“Well, well, who knew my night would be graced by the faces of both the Danvers sisters,” Lucy greeted.

“Hi, Luce,” Alex said while Kara cried, “I miss you!”

It looked like Lucy was sitting in her living room; a light was flashing on her face and Kara could only guess it was a muted television. That’s when it dawned on her. “You lied.”

“What?” Lucy asked, concerned.

“You said you were busy tonight but clearly –“

“Kara, don’t,” Alex cut her off.

“What? I want to know why from her,” Kara said, looking pointedly back at Lucy. Lucy looked away from the camera for a moment. “Oh, it was game night.”

Kara nodded and Lucy sighed. “I’d love to come. I miss you all so much. But James is my ex and you two are exes now and that’s a lot of baggage.”

“We’re all fine, though,” Kara pleaded. “James and I are friends. And you and I are friends. And I’m pretty sure you and James could be friends again. We just want you here.”

Alex’s eyes narrowed. “That doesn’t seem like the Lucy Lane I know.”

Lucy smiled softly. “What? You’re missing the hard and abrasive. That sounds nothing like me.”

Alex laughed and Lucy went on, “But I really thought James was the love of my life and I got a second chance and still had to let him go.”

Kara’s heart clenched. She still blamed herself for that even though she had done nothing to interfere with their relationship. She would never have done that to them. But James had left Lucy because of his feelings for Kara. The best thing about Lucy was that she never blamed Kara for that; she never blamed Kara for trying to date her ex. Lucy still called Kara a friend.

“I can’t make you to come to game night,” Kara amended, “But you’re always welcome and we would all want you here.”

“Thanks, Kara. I just don’t think it’s a good idea for me or for James. And I’m sure no one would appreciate the tension. But thank you.” Kara disagreed with her but with one look from Alex she shut her mouth and kept her comment to herself.

“Well then, Luce. Outside of game night, we should hang out. Come out with us sometimes. Just us and you.” Lucy sighed again but her smiled widened. “That sounds amazing but I really wasn’t lying when I said I was busy. J’onn didn’t give me a heads up about this job before it was handed over to me. I’m barely surviving over here.”

“You should see, J’onn,” Kara remarked. “I don’t think he ever leaves the DEO. He’s like an alien or something.”

Kara smiled mischievously and Lucy and Alex burst out laughing. When she caught her breath, Lucy spoke, “That’s what it feels like to be me. This is the first night all week that I’ve left the base before midnight. It would probably be more efficient for me to camp out.”

They talked for a little while longer but Kara was still yawning and eventually, Alex called it a night. “We’ll let you go, Luce. Have a good night off.”

Lucy saluted and ended the call. Kara patted Alex’s leg. “So, what’s the verdict?”

“If you push me off, I’m pushing you off.”

Kara guffawed. “I’d like to see you try.”

 

She rolled over in bed, the sun shining brightly through the window. She blinked a few times before her eyes opened; she never had any trouble getting up in the morning. Kara smiled at the back of her sister’s head, which was still lying on the bed and not on the floor, before she grabbed her phone, unplugging it. The screen lit up, displaying a couple of text messages from a number she didn’t recognize.

**Unknown (5:08am)** _Hello, Kara_

**Unknown (5:08am)** _I’m sorry to be bothering you so early. I was wondering if you could meet me for lunch today._

**Unknown (5:10am)** _I realize you probably don’t know who this is. I usually reach you at work. It’s Lena Luthor_

**Unknown (5:12am)** _You are also probably sleeping_

**Unknown (5:16am)** _I hope to hear from you_

The straightforward and professional manner amused Kara but didn’t surprise her. Lena Luthor sending her an emoji would have made her fall off the bed; it seemed out of character.

As soon as the amusement was gone she started to come to terms with the actual situation. Lena usually used her work number to reach her but this time it was her personal number. Whether that denoted other intentions, Kara wasn’t sure. Lena Luthor wanted to meet her for lunch. Kara hadn’t asked for an interview. Lena hadn’t said she had any information for Kara, she simply asked her out to lunch. Their previous meetings had always been under the guise of work even though they strayed from that more often than not.

Her fingertips trembled against the screen and an incoherent series of letters were typed out. She nervously deleted them. It was a visual representation of her blustering that Lena didn’t need to see. Without even thinking about what she had to do and whether she could actually get out of work, she sent off a message:

**Sent (7:18am)** _I’d love to!_

It was too much. It was way too much. She should have just said “of course” or “sounds good” like a normal person. They were friends, right? It was fine. It was going to be fine. Kara threw the phone on the bed, not allowing herself to stare at the message screen.

She had been so enwrapped in trying to figure out how to answer that she had not noticed Alex waking up. “I just watched you go through a lot of emotions in a very short period of time. What’s up?”

“Nothing,” Kara said quickly.

Alex looked at the phone and back to her. “Yes, because that reaction definitely means nothing is up.”

Alex reached for the phone and Kara thanked Rao for her super-speed because she grabbed it first. Now Alex was looking at her like she had lost her mind.

“What?” Kara asked innocently.

“What’s on your phone?”

“It’s nothing,” Kara said, a smile she couldn’t control breaking across her face.

Alex’s jaw dropped open. “Don’t ‘it’s nothing’ me, Kara. Who’s texting you?”

Alex jumped on her, pinning her down and grabbing for the phone. This was an unfair fight. Alex knew Kara wouldn’t do anything to retaliate because she didn’t want to inadvertently hurt her, so Kara was at a disadvantage, holding back her strength. Alex pried her fingers off the phone and took it from her. Alex sat back, still on top of her and Kara sighed into the cushion.

Alex’s face went from excited to surprise to calm unhappiness in less than a second. She was silent and Kara shoved her off, getting out of bed. “I’m going to be late.”

“Since when have you been on a texting basis with Lena Luthor?

“You read it. Since today,” Kara snapped, pulling clothes out of her closet.

“Why?”

“Why what?” Kara asked, turning around to face her sister.

“Why is she texting you?

Kara shrugged and lied, “I would guess she wants another interview. Like I said, nothing. I really have to go, I’m going to be late. Do you want me to drop you off at the DEO?”

Alex shook her head, tossing Kara’s phone on the bed. “Are you still being careful?”

Kara feigned ignorance.

“With Lena Luthor.”

“There is nothing to be careful about. Lena is a good person. I trust her.”

“You didn’t tell her did you?!” Alex questioned, fear on her face.

“Oh my gosh, no, Alex. But what would be the problem if I did?” Kara asked, testing the waters even though she already knew Alex’s reaction. As suspected, it wasn’t positive. “Because she’s a Luthor, Kara. Her family not only has a past with aliens but an agenda against your family in particular. You don’t need to unnecessarily put yourself in harm’s way.”

“She saved your life. She took down the men at her gala. What more do you want from her?” Kara argued and Alex’s eyes widened. Kara grabbed her bag. “I have to go.”

 

The line at Noonan’s wasn’t long so she went in to pick herself up a latte and donut. It had been months but there were sometimes when she still almost asked for Ms. Grant’s order. It had been drilled into her system since she became Cat’s assistant and every time she stopped the words, “Ms. Grant’s usual,” from coming out of her mouth, she felt a rush of melancholy and nostalgia that left her smiling sadly as she ordered.

Snapper was in a worse mood than usual. His growl was deep. “You’re having lunch with Lena Luthor?”

“Yes?” Kara responded, unsure of what he wanted to hear.

“I haven’t assigned you an L-Corp story. We don’t need another one.” He rifled through papers on his desk.

“I know but she asked so I thought it would be a good oppor-“

He stopped and looked up. “Lena Luthor asked you to meet for lunch?”

“Yes? And I thought it would –” She tried to finish her sentence but Snapper was not having it, “The CEO of L-Corp asked you, our most novice reporter, to lunch?”

“Yes,” Kara said, aggravated. He constantly refused to accept her onto his team and it was getting old, fast. “So, I thought it would be a good opportunity to see if there was a story there.”

He huffed. “Well, since you’re going, you might as well be working. I don’t want to hear it unless it’s great. Don’t waste my time, Danvers.”

He gestured for her to leave his office and she did, shaking her head with irritation. It immediately disappeared when her phone vibrated.

**Lena Luthor (9:48am)** _Great! Why don’t we meet at the new place on 51 st at noon?_

Kara stared at the message. Her knowledge of the city’s restaurants included Noonans, wherever Ms. Grant had her make reservations, and her favorite pizza, Chinese, and ice cream places. Everything else was pretty much a mystery.

**Sent (9:49am)** _New place?_

**Lena Luthor (9:52am)** _Sorry, I should have been more specific. Funny enough, it is actually called_ The Meeting Place _. Is noon okay?_

**Sent (9:54am)** _Of course! I’ll see you there_

Kara had to refrain from sending a smiley face. When noon came, she was already late. 51st street was much closer to L-Corp than CatCo and Kara had missed one bus and then the next and if she waited for a third, she would have most likely missed Lena entirely.

So at 12:03, Kara was hightailing down the sidewalk, her bag banging into her side. She was holding onto the straps so it didn’t go flying. Her hair was falling out of the ponytail she had secured it in. 51st street was still a couple blocks away and when she found that, she still wasn’t sure exactly where _The Meeting Place_ was located.

Kara ran across the street, which involved a couple of cars honking in annoyance. In the glass of the door, she could see that she looked very much frazzled and was already fifteen minutes late. She re-did her hair, smoothing it out as best as she could. She may have been out of breath with a slight tint to her cheeks but she wasn’t sweating profusely. She took a couple deep breaths to steady herself and walked in.

It was very fancy. Kara had expected a quiet lunch place, something like Noonans. She felt extremely out of place dressed in only what she wore to work: green dress pants and a white blouse with a navy sweater over the top. Then again, this was Lena Luthor who was much more used to the finer things and expense wasn’t much of a problem for her. Since she started at the DEO, Kara had not had to worry as much but her apartment rent alone used to take up most of her CatCo paychecks.

She became even more conscious of herself when the hostess gave her a weird look. “Um…hi, I’m meeting Ms. Luthor.”

The woman’s eyes shot open wide. “Oh! Oh, uh, yes, of course.”

Disbelief was fighting against her need to do her job. “Right this way.”

Kara was led to a table almost directly in the middle of the restaurant. Most people were minding their own business but she did get a few looks. She fixed her glasses self-consciously. Lena was sitting at a table for two, wearing a long sleeve white blouse and a black pencil skirt. Lena looked up from her phone when Kara pulled out the seat. There was a smile on her face but Kara still apologized. “I’m so sorry I’m late. My boss was being –“

Lena waved her hand. “There’s no need to explain, Kara. It’s the middle of a workday. I understand completely.

Kara sat down and Lena asked, “What can I get you to drink?”

“The water here is fine, thank you,” Kara returned. She opened her bag and pulled out her notebook and pen. She set it on the edge of the table and Lena looked at it.

“Are we doing an interview?”

Kara looked at Lena with wide eyes. “Oh, I’m sorry. You invited me to – usually you – I just thought you had something you wanted to say.”

Lena’s smile was understanding. “I’d rather not talk about work today. Or be on the record.”

Kara stuffed the notebook and pen back into her bag, instantly forgetting about her promise to Snapper. They didn’t talk about L-Corp or CatCo, unless in passing. Lena asked how Kara was; she wanted to know more about her. Kara was a little flustered at first. Usually their conversations, even if they weren’t interviews, never delved into anything too personal but Lena was as easy to talk to as always. She told her about Winn and James and Lucy and most importantly Alex.

The waiter had come and gone multiple times when Kara finally let out a breath. “I am so sorry. Once I get going I can go on forever and you have to stop me. But you asked so I just started telling you everything and you probably didn’t even really care. You just asked how I was in general and now you learned about everyone I know and I’m so –“

“Kara” - Lena was smiling, not looking perturbed by Kara’s long-winded speech about her own life or the rambling - “I said I wanted to learn more about you. I wasn’t just saying that. Before today, I knew you worked at CatCo and that you have a ridiculous obsession with food. And that you know Supergirl,” Lena whispered the last bit and gestured between them, “This is exactly what I wanted.”

Kara fidgeted with her hands under Lena’s gaze. “Well, I’d like to learn more about you too.”

“It’s only fair,” Lena admitted. And she spoke some but not as much. And when she did, her words didn’t give Kara much information about her life. She held back as she always had. She was very good at talking without actually saying anything. Of course, Kara already knew more than she should about Lena Luthor, being Supergirl, but she had to make sure not to reveal that. She took in everything she was told as if it was new. And to give Lena credit, most of it was, there just wasn’t a lot to begin with.

When they were finished eating and the check arrived, Kara realized her mistake. She had not even looked at the pricing on the menu. The waiter set down the piece of paper and Kara looked at him. “Excuse me, we need two checks.”

He looked at Lena and nodded, walking away without answering. Lena reached out for the check. “I invited you to lunch. I’ll take care of it.”

“Oh, you shouldn’t – you don’t have to –“

Lena chuckled, setting a credit card down. “I insist.”

They had spent almost two hours at lunch, more than the amount of time Kara was given. And, she didn’t even have anything to give Snapper in return. Lena walked her out of the restaurant. There was a black cab waiting on the curb and Lena turned to Kara. “Would you like a ride back to CatCo?”

“No, no, that’s alright. Thank you though,” Kara responded. Lena reached out and squeezed Kara’s arm. Something seemed to have taken Lena by surprise but she quickly moved on. Kara tried not to notice her teeth worrying at her lips. “Well, I had a wonderful time today. I hope I’ll see you again soon.”

She stood there for an extra second, making a decision. Kara heard her heart speed up and then Lena was leaning in and Kara was paralyzed. Lena left a quick kiss on Kara’s cheek and then she was in her car driving away before Kara thought of a response.

She smiled giddily to herself and walked down the street, choosing not to run back to CatCo. She was already late; maybe she could think of a story on the way back so Snapper wouldn’t fire her right off the bat. But as she walked, ideas for the story were shoved to the back of her mind when a realization came over her. She thought back over the lunch: about how it wasn’t for work, how Lena had paid, how she wanted to see Kara soon, how she had kissed her. She stopped in her tracks. _Did I just go on a date with Lena Luthor?_

 

Her fingers hovered over the phone but she finally pressed send.

**Sent (8:14pm)** _Thank you for lunch today_

**Lena Luthor (8:32pm)** _It was my pleasure. I had a wonderful afternoon_

**Lena Luthor (8:33pm)** _Do you think we could make it a regular thing? You are my only friend in National City_

Though it was a sad thought, Kara still found herself teasing

**Sent (8:33pm)** _Are you trying to guilt me into having lunch with you, Miss Luthor?_

**Lena Luthor (8:34pm)** _Is it working, Miss Danvers?_

**Sent (8:34pm)** _Yes…but I would have said yes anyway :)_

Kara figured that now, their relationship could handle emojis. She was not going to ask Lena if their lunch had been a date. First of all, she didn’t know what she wanted the answer to that question to be. She loved spending time with Lena but her feelings were all jumbled. She had only recently broken it off with James. She was currently holding Mon-El at arm's length. And the floaty feeling she felt with Lena was confusing enough by itself. Lena had just made it clear that they were only friends.

**Lena Luthor (8:45pm)** _Unfortunately, I am extremely busy this week but what about next Tuesday?_

**Sent (8:45pm)** _That sounds great! Except this time, I get to pick the place_

**Lena Luthor (8:46pm)** _And where would you like to go?_

**Sent (8:47pm)** _I’m not telling you! It’s a surprise!_

**Lena Luthor (8:47pm)** _Why do I feel like potstickers will be involved?_

**Sent (8:48pm)** _:/ How’d you guess?_

**Lena Luthor (8:48pm)** _Well until then, I suppose. Goodnight, Kara :)_

Kara had been right. She did almost fall off the bed. She had not taken Lena for a person to use emojis but there it was, the smiley face staring her straight in the face.

**Sent (8:48pm)** _Goodnight, Lena_


	3. Chapter 3

For the next week, Kara couldn’t get Lena out of her head. She obsessed over their date, which was what she had started referring to it as whenever she thought about it. She had never said it out loud or told anyone else. Maybe it was just a lunch between friends. That made sense. Lena had said that Kara was her only friend in National City. Kara was thinking too much into it.

She had been distracted on movie night. Everyone had noticed but only Alex had mentioned anything. “You’ve been glued to your phone all night.”

“So have you,” Kara nudged Alex with her shoulder. Alex just grumbled something that sounded to Kara like, “I am not,” and dropped it.

 

Kara took Lena to her favorite Chinese place. She couldn’t help but laugh because Lena, in her freshly pressed and rather expensive clothing, looked entirely out of place. But she took it all with grace. Kara ordered enough food to feed six people. She almost forgot whom she was with until Lena showed concern. “Kara, that’s your third order of potstickers. Where are you putting it?”

Kara stopped, a potsticker halfway to her mouth and she frowned, dropping it back on the plate. She scooted it around the plate for a few moments before Lena groaned. “Goodness, Kara, just eat it. I wasn’t trying to make you feel guilty. I was just curious.”

Kara stuffed it in her mouth, finally content and stood up. “We should get ice cream.”

“Are you sure?”

Kara rolled her eyes. “I always save room for ice cream,” – she remembered it was only their lunch break – “Of course, if you don’t have time for it –“

“I am the CEO. I make my own schedule. I should be asking you that question.” Kara checked her phone. She was cutting it close but she really didn’t want to leave yet. “We’re good. I know this place right down the street!”

She grabbed hold of Lena’s hand before she realized what she was doing. Both women froze. Lena was staring at their intertwined fingers, not doing anything to untangle them but also not moving. Lena’s eyes slowly moved upward to Kara’s. Kara couldn’t read her expression. She self-consciously let go of Lena’s hand, laughing it off. “Okay, come on, it’s not too far from here.”

She tried to pretend it hadn’t happened but Lena’s hand brushed against her own too many times for it to have been an accident as they walked to the ice cream place. Kara got a large waffle cone, filled to the top with mint chocolate chip. And Lena got a small cake cone with one scoop of raspberry chocolate chip. They were walking through the square across the street. Kara took the first bite into the ice cream cone. “Ugh, it’s so good.”

“So, you’re that type of ice cream eater,” Lena stated.

Kara restrained herself from sticking her tongue out and instead eyed Lena’s ice cream. “At least my cone doesn’t look sad.”

“I’m sorry I don’t have the endless pit of a stomach that you have,” Lena joked. It took Kara no time to inhale the ice cream. “Did you even taste it?”

It was rhetorical. Lena was still working away at her's. “If you didn’t just lick it until it was gone, you could be done too.”

Lena looked sideways at Kara. “I’m savoring it.”

The square wasn’t huge and they ended up walking in circles around it until Lena had finished. She asked Kara about Alex and Kara didn’t really know what to say. “Sorry, my sister hates you” or “My sister doesn’t want me around you” or “Apparently it doesn’t matter that you saved her life, she thinks you’re evil” didn’t seem appropriate. So instead she shrugged. “ I think she’s keeping secrets. But I can’t really blame her. So am I.”

Lena looked critically at her but didn’t ask and tossed her napkin in the nearby trash bin. “This was nice.”

“Yeah, it was.” Kara smiled, grateful they didn’t linger on the topic of Alex for a long time.

“I don’t get to do this very often. Something casual like this, I mean. It’s a nice change so thank you for taking charge today,” Lena said.

Kara shied away from the gratitude. “Oh, it was really nothing. I’ve brought you the food but I wanted to show you my favorite places to eat. This was just an excuse for that.”

Lena boldly took Kara’s hand and she started. Lena always had a way of looking at her like Kara was the only person in the world at that moment in time. Lena’s heart jumped but was then steady. “You should probably be getting back to work. I’ve kept you long enough. Thank you again.”

Lena squeezed her hand but didn’t let go. Kara was at a loss for words for a moment. Lena’s hand was warm against her own. “Of course! I’d love to do it again.”

“Well, I did say this should be a regular thing. How about I text you for next time?”

Kara smiled happily. She would miss Lena’s couch; it was safety, a comfort. But she rather enjoyed going out with Lena. “That sounds perfect.”

Lena dipped her head. “Bye, Kara.”

“Bye, Lena.” Lena finally let go of her hand and threw Kara one last glance over her shoulder, apparently decided against a kiss this time around. Kara was only slightly upset by that. She stood for a few moments, just letting the world spin around her. She was dreading Kal’s, “I told you so,” though she was pretty sure they had both known he was right from the start. Even though he was under the impression that Lena Luthor liked her and joked about her own affections for the woman, she knew he hadn’t really expected her to return the feelings. Kara hadn’t expected it herself but it was strong enough that she couldn’t really pretend it wasn’t happening anymore.

She groaned. Alex was already giving her enough trouble about Lena. What was she going to think when she found out her little sister had a massive crush on Lena Luthor?

 

She headed down the hallway to her apartment to find Alex waiting outside the door, nervously tapping against the wall. She hadn’t been expecting to see her sister so soon, she hadn’t even figured out how to tell her. Alex became alert as Kara passed to unlock the door. “Alex, what are you doing here?”

“I need to talk to you about something.”

Kara shot her a look and finished opening the door. “Ooookaaaay.”

She had some things to tell Alex too. Her crush. The dates. She was pretty sure they had been dates and that there had been multiple. She was so used to telling Alex everything that this one matter that she had been keeping to herself was making her feel guilty. Kara set her stuff on the counter. “Spill.”

“Are you alright?” Alex asked.

Kara looked bewildered. “Yeah, of course. I’m fine.”

“Crinkle.”

Kara groaned. “Ugh, crinkle.” 

“What’s going on?” 

“Nothing.”

“That’s what you’ve been saying a lot lately.”

Kara glared at her. “Alex, spill.”

Alex stared at her in silence and then, “Fine, I need a drink first.”

Kara pulled the bottle of whiskey, that she kept for Alex, out of the cabinet and poured a glass. She herself was not so keen on drinking, not that any alcohol on Earth had any effect on her.

Alex swallowed a large gulp that was bound to hurt as it went down. The glass clinked on the counter and Kara watched Alex go through an entire decision-making process. It was clear that this was not the time for Kara to tell Alex anything. “You know Sawyer? That cop?”

“Supergirl has met her a couple times at crime scenes.” 

“Well,” Alex paused, composing herself, “I have feelings for her.”

Kara laughed nervously. “I don’t know what that means.”

“Feelings, Kara.”

“Oh.” Kara tried not to act too surprised by the news. Number one, she had never thought about that side of her sister and number two, she was starting to think that she had feelings for someone as well. Kara wanted Alex to trust her and tell her anything she needed to say. But, it had caught her off guard. She was not expecting Alex to come out when she might have been about to do the same thing. “She’s gay?”

“Yes.”

“And you’re saying you’re gay too?”

Alex’s shoulders fell. “I don’t know. It’s so complicated.”

Kara nodded. “I understand that.”

“What does that mean?” Alex glared at her, trying to pry the secret out with a look. Kara stumbled back at the intensity, attempting to find an answer to give without giving anything away. Alex had just told her she might be gay and Kara couldn’t bring herself to belittle the importance of that by admitting the same possibility. She had overshadowed Alex so often just because of who she was; she wanted Alex to have this. “Just that I know what it’s like to keep a secret from everyone.”

 

It wasn’t a day later that Kara barged in through Alex’s window to find her crying on the couch. “You didn’t show up for work and I got worried. That’s not like you.”

“You’re right, I should go in.” Alex took a sip of whiskey and set the glass on the table.

Kara stopped her. “Something is clearly wrong.”

Alex was standing with her hands on her hips. She was trying to be strong but her face was showing something entirely different. J’onn would not appreciate a slightly drunk and tearful agent showing up in the middle of the night anyway. Kara wasn’t letting her go anywhere. “Is this about you coming out?”

That was the beginning of Alex’s anxious pacing. “No, and just forget I said anything about it."

“What does that mean?” Kara was trying to understand but this was new territory for both of them and she didn’t know how to approach a heartbroken Alex.

“I made a mistake” - her voice was rising - “I shouldn’t have said anything.”

The last time she had seen her sister, she had sent her off to “get the girl” but there was no Detective Sawyer to be seen and Alex was starting to cry.

“She doesn’t like me” - her voice caught in her throat - “like that.” Alex fell back onto the couch, her breaths coming in quick and sharp, still trying to hold back the tears. She couldn’t keep them at bay for long, covering her face.

Kara hugged her. “I am so proud of you.”

Kara felt Alex shake her head but Kara only nodded in return.

She held Alex close, trying to comfort her, to take in some of the pain. Alex and relationships had been rare and short whenever they occurred. They were nothing Alex ever put much stock in but this was something else entirely and Kara couldn’t quite get the image of Lena Luthor out of her head. 

 

**Sent (11:31pm)** _Can we talk?_

**Lena Luthor (11:38pm)** _Kara, is something wrong?_

**Sent (11:38pm)** _Not really, I guess, but there’s something…something just happened with my sister and it made me think_

**Lena Luthor (11:38pm)** _What happened? Is she okay?_

Kara didn’t know how to succinctly type out everything she was thinking and feeling to Lena. She shouldn’t tell Lena about Alex but the whole situation was intertwined with why she texted Lena in the first place; it would be hard to leave out.

Her phone rang, jolting her from her reverie. Her screen read: _Lena Luthor_. She didn’t hesitate to answer. “Hi.”

“You didn’t answer. And this sounds serious,” Lena explained. Kara nodded, forgetting Lena wasn’t in the room with her. “So, what happened with your sister?”

“Um.” She was struggling with how to say what she needed to say to Lena. The image of her sister crying over being rejected was still fresh in her mind. “Okay, it’s very new and it’s a touchy subject right now. I know you don’t know her but I would appreciate if this just stayed between us.”

“Kara, you don’t have to worry. Who am I going to talk to about your sister?” Lena answered.

“Okay, um, Alex came out to me” – there was no audible response from Lena – “And then she went for it with the woman she likes and she was rejected. She’s kinda a mess about it.”

There was silence on the other end of the line. Kara checked to make sure the call was still going and it was. She heard shuffling and finally, Lena spoke, “I don’t think this is a phone call conversation either.”

“Oh, okay, well, I’m sorry for bothering you. I know it’s late –“

“Do you want to come over?”

“What?” Kara said, faster than she meant to answer.

“Do you want to come over and talk?”

“Oh, um, is that okay? Do you have to work tomorrow?”

“I was planning on it, but it’s Saturday. So, no, I don’t _have_ to work tomorrow.”

Kara could hear Lena’s smile. “Okay, then, I’ll be over soon.”

Kara almost hung up but Lena spoke again, “Kara, you don’t know where I live.”

Kara paused. “To be fair, you are always working. I didn’t even think. I just assumed L-Corp.”

“I’ll text you my address. The doorman can send you up.”

True to her word, the doorman asked no questions and waved Kara up. She should have expected it but the ‘PH’ on the elevator still caused her to pause. Kara’s apartment was nice; too nice for her means sometimes but a penthouse was on a whole other level.

And so was Lena Luthor. So why she ever let Kal get into her head with the ridiculous assumption that Lena could have had any interest in her at all, she couldn’t say. But here she was and Lena was expecting her. She couldn’t turn back.

The elevator door opened onto a small hallway with one door. Kara’s knocks were hesitant. Lena opened the door almost immediately and in answer to Kara’s questioning look, “They let me know you were here. Come in.”

The room was sparse, the furniture minimalistic. Everything was state of art and shiny. It looked rarely used. It didn’t look like Lena had taken the time to decorate the space apart from the necessities. It was a far cry from Kara’s own home.

Lena walked away to the kitchen. “Would you like a drink?”

“Oh, no, no thank you,” Kara said, standing awkwardly between the door, the living room, and the kitchen. Lena looked at her as she poured a glass of wine. “You can make yourself comfortable. I didn’t invite you here to have you stand in the doorway looking like you want to run.”

Kara ducked her head as heat rose in her cheeks and she settled on the couch. It was a picture of perfection; she was worried about getting it dirty or creasing it. Lena didn’t seem to have the same problem when she settled down. She was wearing black dress pants and a floral blouse. She looked like she had just come home from work. Lena gestured at Kara’s pants. “Those are cute.”

Kara looked down at her pants covered in puppy faces. Usually, she wore matching pajamas so she was extremely grateful she wasn’t wearing that, but in hindsight, she wished she had thought to change before running out of her apartment building. She was just wearing an old college t-shirt that she had thrown a hooded jacket over. “I wasn’t really expecting to leave my apartment tonight.”

Lena set her wine glass on the table. “I only said they’re cute.”

“Yeah.” Kara was staring at her hands in her lap.

Lena settled more into the couch, resting her arm on the back to hold up her head. “So, your sister came out to you. You’ve told me a lot about her but not that so I’m guessing it was a pretty big surprise.”

Kara didn’t know how to respond but Lena didn’t force her. “And you’re having trouble with that?”

Kara’s head popped up. “What? No. No. That doesn’t matter at all. That would never – I would never care as long as she’s happy. So, I guess right now I’d like to punch this woman for making my sister cry. And I know she’s upset right now but you should’ve seen her face when she talked about her. I have never seen Alex like that before. It was like everything was making sense all of a sudden.”

Kara looked up at Lena, realizing everything suddenly made sense to her too. The smiles. The winks. The lingering looks. Even if Kara couldn’t imagine what a CEO would see in a reporter, it had never been one-sided.

Lena didn’t look annoyed at her long response; she looked intrigued. She was listening to everything Kara said. Her hand had come up to play unconsciously with her hair. “I’m not sure it’s in anyone’s best interest for you to accost this woman, whoever she is.”

“Well, yeah, I haven’t actually done and it and I wouldn’t. I would just like to.” Kara gritted her teeth.

Lena laughed. “You’ve always been very determined but I’m not sure I knew that translated to you starting fights. It’s…charming.”

Kara swallowed hard under Lena’s gaze but mumbled, “You wouldn’t even believe…" 

Lena readjusted, causing her to lean more toward Kara. “Then what has your mind occupied?”

Lena’s face was soft, softer than usual. Many times there were harsh lines and jagged edges. Lena always had a front on when she was out in public. She had a reputation; one that she was constantly forced to revise but this wasn’t that Lena Luthor who had to live her life under everyone’s scrutiny. Those lines disappeared. She could allow herself to be a little less guarded. Her eyes were focused on Kara, waiting for her to speak.

“Alex came out to be with her. That’s how much she felt for her and it still didn’t matter. She ended up heartbroken anyway. And” - Kara’s voice fell quiet - “that scares me.”

“It’s perfectly normal to be scared for your sister –“

“That’s not what I mean.”

Lena laughed but stifled it. “I know.”

“You do?” Kara said, surprised. Kara didn’t think she had misread the signals but then again, this was new territory. Usually, she spent months working up the courage to even admit she had a crush and with Lena it had happened so fluidly and easily that she hadn’t noticed at first. All of a sudden it hit her and that was all she could think about.

“Taking chances can be scary.”

Kara could fly into the eye of a storm, she would run down bullets, but this scared her. She was invulnerable to all of that. This was where she could be cut. “That’s part of it but that’s not really it either. I don’t know –“

“Your rambling is usually adorable, Kara, but I’d really appreciate it if you would just say exactly what you mean right now,” Lena said. She looked a little desperate for Kara to cut to the chase. Kara was too shy to meet her eyes.

“I’mafraidI’mgoingtoberejectedbyyou.” It all came out at once because otherwise, she may have stopped herself. The room grew quiet. Kara took a deep breath. “I’m afraid I’m going to be rejected by you.”

Lena let out a breath beside her. “Thank god.”

Kara finally looked at her and was met with a wonderfully, brilliant smile. “Um…”

“I didn’t know if I was misreading things. You’re so nice to everyone. I seriously couldn’t figure out if you were just being friendly or if –“

“So those _were_ dates?” Kara interrupted her. Now that she didn’t need to be worried about Lena’s reaction, she could get some answers.

Lena chuckled and nodded. “Yes, those were dates.”

Kara let out a sigh of relief. “Good. Because I’ve been spiraling ever since, not knowing what’s going on.”

“You think you’re the only one?” Lena asked, a little disbelieving. “You freaked out when you realized you were holding my hand the other day.”

Kara nodded, grimacing. “Sometimes I blow things out of proportion and then can’t deal with them properly. And you weren’t saying anything so I thought I had really screwed things up. I decided to pretend it never happened.”

Lena didn’t have anything to say about that and instead reached for her glass, draining the last of her wine.

“So,” Lena drew out the silence, "you don’t have anything to be scared of.”

“I don’t?”

Lena shook her head, laughing. “I thought I was making it very clear how I felt about you. I really like you.”

Kara narrowed her eyes. She was going to make sure everything was spelled out so she could believe it: Lena Luthor, owner of L-Corp, billionaire, was interested in her. “This is real? This is actually happening? You want to date me?”

“Well, I would like to take you on an official date first since the last two didn’t seem to get the message across. But yes, I want to date you. Kara, are you okay?” Kara had stopped breathing for a second. She was perfectly fine but saw why that would be of concern to Lena.

“Yeah! Yeah! I’m great, actually. Just taking it all in. Wow, okay” – she couldn’t hide the enormous smile that was stretching across her face – “You’re you and I’m me and wow. You like me. That’s great because I like you too.”

“I gathered as much.” Lena smirked.

Kara let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding. “So, what do we do now?”

Lena checked her phone quickly. “Well, it is pretty late. I can get my driver to take you home. Or you can sleep in one of the guest rooms.”

“One of the guest rooms?” Kara said, looking around for the first time since she entered the apartment.

“There are two. You can have your pick. But it’s up to you. Either way is no hassle.”

Kara yawned on cue. She wanted to stay, if not just because the bed was so much closer than her own. But, Lena had mentioned that she was planning on going to work the next day and though Kara thought that was crazy (the woman needed to give herself a break), she also didn’t want to be intrusive. She stood up from the couch, Lena following suit. “I’d love to stay but I think it would probably be best if I went home tonight.”

“Of course.” Lena sent a quick message. “The car will be waiting for you downstairs.”

Kara reached out and took Lena’s hand, letting their hands hang between them. “I’m glad this happened.”

“Me too,” Lena replied, squeezing Kara’s hand.

Kara took a step forward and hugged Lena. She was warm and Kara relaxed into the hug, feeling Lena do the same. Lena began to move and Kara felt a shock on the side of her face when Lena’s lips touched her cheek. “Goodnight, Kara.”

Kara was backing up toward the door, holding onto Lena’s hand until she couldn’t anymore. “Goodnight, Lena.”

When she closed the door of the penthouse, she fell back onto it. There was a comfort and happiness that enveloped her and she reveled in it. Until the crushing reality of the situation came back to haunt her. She started thinking about how much danger Lena could be in if anyone found out who she really was and who Lena was becoming to her. It was a dangerous game to play. Kara had been back and forth on whether it was worth it, the risk that is, but if she never tried anything because there was a risk, she would never have anything. That was the downside of being Supergirl and being Kara. They were almost separate lives but the decision of one greatly impacted the other.


	4. Chapter 4

Kara’s concern for Lena only deepened and became more real when the underground alien bar was attacked and the DEO found connections to Cadmus and a larger threat. All of a sudden, everyone at the DEO was under the impression that Lena Luthor was connected to the mess, as her mother was the head of Cadmus. J’onn didn’t want to hear Kara’s excuses. Winn kept silent, wanting to keep his job. James thought Lena was in deep. Even Alex was full of distrust, enough that she wouldn’t listen to Kara.

“Lillian kidnapped you, Supergirl. She took your blood. Lena is a Luthor. It runs in the family.” J’onn’s words had Kara clenching her fists and Alex stepped in, intervening before there was a scene.

“Supergirl, the dispersion agent Cadmus needs is made exclusively by L-Corp.”

She turned around in that moment, without saying another word, and took off from the balcony of the DEO. Lena may not be involved but she was in the crosshairs if Cadmus knew that information.

When she arrived, the attack was already underway. She caught a security guard mid-air and took him to safety. She only landed a couple of punches before the cyborg threw her into the L-Corp sign in the lobby of the building. She grunted as she tried to get up, her eyes connecting with Lena’s. She had just appeared around the corner and she looked terrified. Kara wanted to yell, “You shouldn’t be here!” at Lena but the cyborg was lifting up the remnants of the metal ‘L’ and throwing it across the lobby. In a split second, she saw everything she had said to Lena meaning nothing. She didn’t have time to think about what she was doing. Lena could not get hurt; she wouldn’t allow it.

Supergirl sped across the lobby, skidding to a halt in front of Lena and crossing her arms in front of her face. The metal and concrete burst to dust as it came into contact with her, pushing her back a few inches. Lena looked completely bewildered by the change of events. She wanted to sweep Lena up and fly her somewhere far away, somewhere safe. But Supergirl had to stay; she had to finish dealing with the cyborg. All she could do was yell, “Get out of here!” and hope Lena listened.

Supergirl was slammed to the ground just as units of the National City police force burst through the doors. Their bullets bounced right off of cyborg Hank Henshaw. “No one is coming to save you.”

But then he got distracted and Supergirl kicked his feet out from underneath him. He shot at the cops, hitting Detective Sawyer before disappearing. Kara ran to her. He hadn’t hit her anywhere fatal but Supergirl lifted her in her arms, flying her to the DEO.

Supergirl explained how Lena hadn’t been a part of the attack, that she had to be saved from the attack. Still, J’onn didn’t believe her. Kara slammed her fist on the table. “I looked into Lena’s eyes. She doesn’t know anything about Cadmus or her mother. I know it.”

Alex turned her head and gave her a weird look but Kara was too focused on glaring at J’onn. She ignored Alex.

“Would you stake innocent lives on that?” Kara wanted to rebut with “Yes, I would” but J’onn wouldn’t accept that either.

They sent her back.

She flew through the open door of the balcony. “You know, that door’s not really an entrance.”

Lena was smiling, obviously humored. Supergirl couldn’t bring herself to. “I wanted to thank you for earlier on. Not only did you save the lives of countless of my employees but mine as well.”

If only J’onn and Alex could see Lena like this, there was no way they could believe her capable of anything sinister. “Ms. Luthor, don’t you think you should be going home? Your building was just attacked. That surely gives you a reason to.”

“Exactly why I’m here.” Lena waved her off. “My lobby is destroyed. Someone needs to be here to get things in order.”

“Your life is in danger.”

“As it has been since I moved to National City. I can’t hide.”

Supergirl pursed her lips, trying to be diplomatic. “You’re not safe, Ms. Luthor. There have been multiple attempts on your life. I can protect you.”

Lena’s smile became less friendly and more professional. It was still kind though. “If I hide away somewhere, I would never be free at the rate things have been happening to me lately. And you have proven you can protect me but I have safeguards in place as well. I’m not the only person in National City, but I do seem to be the one taking up most of your time.”

Supergirl sighed quietly. “Not everyone has weekly attempts on their life.’

Lena didn’t say anything. She waited for Supergirl to explain why she returned to L-Corp. As much as she hated it and just wanted to sit down and talk and laugh with Lena, Supergirl did have a job to do. She looked at her boots, wishing, at that moment, that J’onn could take her place. “Well, now I need your help.”

“Anything.”

Supergirl grimaced at Lena’s willingness. “I need help finding your mother.”

Lena’s expression was easy to read. She had no idea why her mother was wanted, just as Kara had expected. Now she had to break the news, crumble what was real to Lena. There was no way to let her down easy. “Your mother is behind Cadmus.”

Every muscle in Lena’s face grew taut and her eyes glistened. Kara couldn’t look at her anymore. It was the face of the betrayed and even if Lena didn’t know who she truly was in that moment, it was something she was going to have to live with: the fact that she had brought that pain to Lena. “You’re lying.”

There was a roughness to her voice that Kara was not used to. Supergirl turned around. She wanted Lena to know that she wasn’t accusing, that she just wanted her help. “She possesses a virus that could wipe out the entire alien population in National City. I need you to help me find her so she doesn’t hurt any more innocent people.”

Lena lifted her chin and pursed her lips. The smile that spread across her face was thin and exempt of any humor. “You know, I thought you were different.”

The shift from amicable to hostile happened so fast that Kara almost missed it. Kara felt a jab in her stomach but Lena wasn’t done. “You wear that symbol on your chest and everyone thinks you’re good.”

Another jab. “You come in here and accuse her of being the devil incarnate. How long before you come after me?”

If she could have said, “I would never,” she would have. But she also knew exactly how Lena was feeling. The only thing Kara wanted was her family. She wanted them to come back. Her parents. But her father was the creator of this virus. He had intended to wipe out other races he deemed lesser than Kryptonians. To her, they had always been the symbol of good.

She should have expected this from Lena. She wasn’t quick to accept the faults of her own parents and tried everything she could to refute the claims. Lena had every right to do the same. To try to save her reality. Kara was learning that not everything was that black and white. “I know what it’s like to be disillusioned by your parents. But I’m a pretty good judge of character and you are not like your mother.”

She had to be closer. The space between her and Lena was cold and distant.

“You are too good and too smart to follow in her path. Be your own hero.” But closing the distance might have been a mistake. She reached out and Lena looked at her hand as if it had scorched her. Lena was on the verge of tears and she swallowed hard. They stared at each other.

Lena was the first to break eye contact. “You can leave the same way you came in.”

Supergirl stood there for a moment, wavering. She wanted to rip off the disguise and come clean. She wanted Lena to know just how much she trusted her, that she didn’t think Lena was capable of the evil she was being accused of by the rest of the world. But for everyone’s safety, she couldn’t do that. She had to accept the dismissal.

 

Kara had a bad night. It had been a while since her last one; not since the nightmares of Astra had faded had she woken up crying in the middle of the night. She was shaking, hugging her sheets tight to her body. But the images of her parents were burned into her now conscious brain.

It wasn’t a real memory. They were leaving her behind this time. For what she didn’t know but the caved-in feeling of her chest and the complete emptiness was enough for her not to care why. It didn’t matter why because it wouldn’t fill that space.

She grabbed at the chain at her neck, making sure it was still there and felt a huge sense of relief when she found that it was.

She wiped at her eyes but the tears still came, so instead, she reached for her phone to call Alex. It rang and rang and rang until it went to voicemail. She didn’t leave one. She would be okay in the morning and there was no need to worry Alex when everything was over.

She automatically clicked open another contact but stopped before pressing the call button. Lena’s name blurred with the water in her eyes. She couldn’t call her. Not after what happened with Supergirl. Not with all the guilt that was building up in Kara for bringing her that pain. And besides, what was she to say to her? How was she supposed to explain to someone who didn’t know who she was?

She closed the phone and heaved herself out of bed. Opening the window in the living room let a blast of cool air into the apartment. She breathed it in, trying to clear her head. The ledge was wide enough for her to sit on. She always ended up there whenever she needed to pretend for a moment.

If she looked up, she had a clear view of the sky. The stars stretched across the city and from this far up, there was less light interference and she could see them much more clearly than from the ground. Sometimes she pretended that if she squinted really hard, she could pick out Krypton from amongst the stars.

Kara wrapped her arms around her knees and pulled them to her chest. She’d lose time staring up into the sky. But she wouldn’t be able to sleep and it was a million times better than the nightmares. 

She chose the brightest star she could see and shut her eyes, trying to remember before. That was Krypton.

 

**Lena (9:08am)** _I haven’t seen you in a while_

Kara closed her eyes. She had been giving Lena the excuse that she was busy. It wasn’t untrue. The search for Cadmus and Lillian was in full-force at the DEO and Snapper wasn’t lessening his onslaught of work, but it had been an excuse. Every time Kara closed her eyes she saw Lena’s face the night when Supergirl turned her world around. She couldn’t bring herself to see Lena because she had done that. Kara knew what was going on behind the scenes. Everyone blamed Lena and Kara was trying to stand up for her but to no avail. Lena’s refusal to help them hadn’t helped her cause in the eyes of J’onn.

Alex wasn’t looking at the whole situation favorably either but she was also catching onto Kara’s mood more and more. It was getting hard to hide from her.

But Kara couldn’t put it off forever if she didn’t want Lena to decide she wasn’t worth it. They hadn’t even been able to go on their actual date before everything started. She knew Lena didn’t understand why she was being distant and it wasn’t fair to Lena to close her out.

**Sent (9:13am)** _I know, I’ve been really busy_

**Lean (9:13am)** _Come see me. I’ll keep my schedule open today. Any time_

Kara didn’t respond because she hadn’t made up her mind if she was going or not.

 

She was supposed to be headed into the DEO when she found herself in the L-Corp elevator. Jess looked caught off guard by her sudden appearance but not entirely surprised. “She’s not with anyone. You can go in." 

Kara didn’t even knock. Lena wasn’t in her office but out on the balcony. She was looking out, scanning the city. Kara felt like she was intruding. Everything was quiet so she crept through the office and out the open door. She stood just outside of it. “Hi.”

Lena turned on the spot, startled but calming when she saw it was Kara. “I thought you might not be coming.”

Kara looked at her feet and pushed her glasses up.

“Are you having second thoughts about what you said?” Lena had turned away from her again.

“What? No, no, not at all. I just…no Lena, I promise. That’s not – Supergirl told me I might want to give you some space.”

“Of course she did,” Lena derided. “Because I’m some horrible person who can’t be trusted. Because I’m a Luthor.

So pitting her other identity against herself hadn’t been the best way to go about the situation. Kara shuffled forward as much as she dared. They may have their feelings out in the open now but that didn’t mean their relationship had changed. They were still in the same place they had been in and that place had boundaries. “I trust you.”

Lena scoffed, the disbelief was clear in her body language. “Lena, I’m not lying to you. I thought she meant you really needed space. That something was going on that I didn’t know about.”

Lena’s shoulders sagged. “And I wasn’t lying when I told you, you’re my only friend in National City. Just ask me next time, Kara.”

Kara stood next to her as Lena looked out at the setting sun that was making her eyes flash bright green. She had her forearms resting against the concrete and her feet crossed. Kara was leaning against it sideways, mostly looking at Lena. She could have a bird’s eye view of the city any time she wanted. She could not, however, always have this view of Lena: the sun shimmering on her hair as she de-stressed from a full day of work. “I’m sorry I made you feel like I didn’t want this.”

Lena finally turned her head to face Kara. “You’re giving me whiplash.”

Kara laughed which was obviously Lena’s intended result. She was trying to drive the tension from between them. Lena settled into the same position Kara was in.

“So, does this mean we should schedule this date, then?”

“I would rather we didn’t just now,” was Lena’s surprising answer. “I know you’ve been busy and I actually have a lot going on right now. I don’t want to have to cancel on you out of the blue. When things quiet down a bit.”

Kara’s heart wasn’t really into her smile. “When things quiet down a bit. Is that possible?”

Lena looked away from Kara, her face becoming stiff. “I’m really not sure.”

 

Nothing between them was solidified. It was all hanging up in the air, waiting to come crashing down on them both. Kara was shirking her responsibilities at CatCo. Snapper was breathing down her neck every second of every day but she couldn’t bring herself to do better. She turned in her articles on time and stood silently as Snapper chewed her out for bias. She rewrote them.

She threw herself into being Supergirl. The faster Cadmus was finished, the faster she might be able to fix things with Lena. Otherwise, there would still be a divide between Lena and Supergirl and Kara wasn’t sure if she could juggle that.

She had given up on trying to turn Mon-El into a hero; he wasn’t cut out for it. He was bartending and trying to invade her life where she didn’t want him. James had become scarce and with him, Winn. She only ever saw James at CatCo and Winn at the DEO. Lucy was entirely nonexistent.

Alex was standoffish with everyone. They hadn’t talked about Maggie since that one night and it didn’t seem like Alex was dealing with it well. Alex still had to work with the woman. She was the one who patched her up after the attack on L-Corp. Kara wasn’t blaming her for her detached behavior, she herself felt lost and out of touch with her life. J’onn didn’t seem to notice her newfound dedication except to work just as hard. Sometimes he wouldn’t look her in the eye and then she knew he knew more than he was letting on but he was trying to stay out of her mind.

Winn had been closely tracking Cadmus and the virus to no avail…until the alarm went off. There was no time to rally the troops. J’onn flew off with Supergirl. They landed at the port. Supergirl stumbled upon landing when she saw Lena next to her mother, holding the key that would release the virus. Her heart tried to wrench itself out of her chest at the thought that she had been wrong. She took a step forward when the women turned around and pleaded. Her jaw was clenched tight, eyes starting to water. “Lena, don’t do it.”

She had been so sure. She had looked into Lena’s eyes. But here she was. She partly wondered if it was all her fault. But still, Lena didn’t look entirely comfortable in the position she was in. There was something off. Supergirl could tell in her voice when she spoke, “Why not? I’m a Luthor." 

It was the statement farthest from the truth. But doubt overrode her want to believe because if Lena really was going to do the unthinkable, Supergirl would have to put a stop to it. She couldn’t let how she felt about Lena cause innocent people to lose their lives. But she was already conflicted because she believed Lena to be innocent.

When Lena turned the key and the rocket launched into the sky, Kara’s heart fell to her feet. J’onn let her off the hook, telling her to go and she couldn’t wait to leave. Anything to get out of there. To not have to look at Lena, the woman who had just destroyed the world she believed in. She took off after the rocket but once she grabbed hold, it exploded. Glowing orange flakes were let off and they drifted slowly to the ground.

Supergirl fell back to the ground and watched them fall around her, dumbstruck. Her mouth hung open in disbelief. This couldn’t be happening. She looked to Lena and took in a sharp breath. She had failed once again to save a planet from destruction. Her whole body went slack, tears threatening to fall but she was Supergirl and she had to keep control.

That’s when she noticed J’onn still standing next to her, looking around and waiting for something to happen. But nothing was happening; he was perfectly healthy. Lillian Luthor was evidently confused by the change of events. A click of heels on pavement caught everyone’s attention.

Lillian turned to her daughter, her face taken over by an understanding that Kara had missed. “You? You made the virus inert?”

Lena smirked. “I did.”

Kara could breathe again. She could hear sirens closing in. “And I called the police.

Kara hated herself for mistrusting her instincts about Lena for even a second because she had been right. Lena had turned against her mother, saving every alien on Earth. Lena deserved the faith that Kara promised her but she had let her trust waver. Kara bit back the urge to run toward her and J’onn put a hand on her shoulder to steady her.

“I know,” was her response to his unspoken statement. She knew he had figured it out but she wasn’t anticipating for him to be gentle about it. “I know. I can’t.”

J’onn followed her back to the DEO. They debriefed; it was all a blur. She had more important things on her mind. Alex was trying to say something but she was already in the air.

She wasn’t surprised to find Lena in her office and was glad she was there. This time, she knocked on the door. It didn’t feel appropriate to barge in as she usually did. Lena turned. There wasn’t so much as a smile but a sense of relief in her movement. She nodded and waved Supergirl in.

Lena didn’t wait. “You thought I was part of Cadmus.”

Supergirl hung her head in shame for a moment and then straightened back up. She wanted to be there as Lena’s friend, not as the hero of the city. It was too professional, too formal for what she really wanted to say. “I tried to tell the people I work with that you weren’t a threat. They wouldn’t believe me.’

“But tonight…” She didn’t have to finish. Kara knew what she wanted to hear because Lena already knew it herself.

“I was surprised to see you there. Standing with your mother. Acting like a united front. You were holding that key and I was caught off guard. I only saw how many people were going to die.”

“But they didn’t,” Lena said. She was stoic, not giving anything away to Supergirl.

Supergirl wanted to smile, to ease the tension, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. “And it’s my turn to thank you. And also ask your forgiveness. What you did, going against your mother, your family, I can’t even imagine how difficult that was. So, thank you. Thank you for saving the lives of so many people. You saved the entire city.”

“I just followed your advice,” Lena said, finally giving a hint of a smile. Supergirl cocked her head to the side, a much too Kara Danvers move to be using in front of Lena. “What?” 

“You told me to be my own hero. So I did.”

“Lena, you were the hero for the entire city tonight.”

She chuckled. “I guess I got a taste of how you feel every day.”

Her laugh died out. There was not a lot of happiness in the room. “I know she’s your –“

“She is a terrible woman. She always has been.” Lena was cold and collected.

“But she’s still your mother. You still hold on to that one sliver of hope that just maybe there could be something between you. I learned some information recently that obliterated my ideas of the people I thought my parents were. It’s not easy to take in. You sent your mother to jail. You have the right to feel how you feel.”

It felt weird standing as Supergirl, a proud and powerful figure in the office of a woman who had just done the incredible and who was now mourning the loss of a woman she never really loved. “I should get going. Thank you again and I hope that you can trust me again.”

Lena looked up before Supergirl took off. “I trust you. But I know what you’re really asking. I don’t blame you for thinking I was going to do it. I won’t hold that against you. 

Supergirl nodded, “Thank you,” and took off into the sky

She flew home, changed, and was back in an alley a couple blocks from L-Corp within minutes.

**Sent (10:08pm)** _Lena?_

**Sent (10:08pm)** _Where are you?_

**Lena (10:09pm)** _I’m in my office. Why?_

**Sent (10:09pm)** _I’m coming_

Her phone dinged but she didn’t look at it. She wasn’t going to take the chance that Lena was telling her not to come. The security guards let her right up as Lena had instructed them to do. Lena’s assistant was gone for the night so Kara knocked hesitantly on the door. “Come in.”

Lena was standing by the window, a glass in her hand. Kara rushed her, pulling her into a hug. She felt Lena pat her on the back once or twice before deciding to hug her back. “Are you okay?”

Lena unwrapped herself from Kara. “Why do you ask?”

“Everything that happened tonight,” Kara responded, “Your mother. The virus.”

“That was only an hour ago. How in the world did you hear about it?” Lena asked truly curious.

“I’m a reporter. It’s my job. Also my sister and a cop I know and –“

“Supergirl,” Lena filled in the obvious blank.

“I’m fine,” Lena answered. She walked over to the couch.

“Lena, you sent your mother to jail. You have the right to feel how you feel. You don’t have to hide that. Especially not with me.”

Lena sat up straighter, her eyebrows gathering. “What did you just say?”

“You have the right to feel how you feel?” Kara said, hesitant with her response. Lena nodded. “That’s what I thought. Someone else said those exact same words to me only a few moments ago. A mutual someone to be exact.”

Kara panicked for one moment before easing back into the conversation. “Supergirl?”

“Supergirl it was.” She didn’t sound like she suspected anything, which Kara was grateful for.

“So, are you okay?”

“You’ve already asked.”

“I didn’t like your answer.’

Lena didn’t give any other answer to that question. And maybe it was because Kara had already said as much. She wasn’t fine and that was okay. Instead, Lena asked a question, “Why are you here?”

She deserved that. She had given Lena space without asking her if that was what she needed and after that, nothing had been right between them. They may have talked but they never actually came to any conclusions. Kara could feel her forehead crinkle. “You’re my friend. And I thought you’d need a friend.”

Lena’s eyebrows rose. “Ah, I see.”

Lena stood up, going to refill her glass. “Well, I do have some work to do so…”

“At eleven pm?” Lena turned, surprised that someone questioned her. “You just saved the entire city. You went through a very emotional time. I think you deserve a break for one night.”

“A CEO doesn’t have much time to take breaks,“ Lena said sternly. Kara stood up. Lena was trying to get rid of her. She knew when she wasn’t wanted. After everything that had happened, it was just one more blow she took.

“Well, don’t work too hard.”

Lena didn’t respond and Kara quietly took her leave of the office.


	5. Chapter 5

Kara, Winn and James sat around a table at the bar. “I am very excited to meet Alex’s new mystery man.”

Kara raised her eyebrows and clenched her teeth. It wasn’t her thing to tell. James looked to Kara. “Do we know what he does for a living? Alex’s guy.”

Kara half-smiled. “Cop.”

The less words that came out of her mouth, the better. If she kept talking, she’d spill. Not only was she not going to out her sister but Alex was really excited to show off Maggie. It had come as a surprise to Kara when Alex told her. Alex had been heartbroken over her and then, Alex was bursting into Kara’s apartment all giddy to tell her the news. Maggie had shown up at Alex’s apartment and apologized. She asked Alex to give her a chance. Kara had heard every single detail about the kiss…unfortunately. Alex and Maggie were together. Kara was mostly confused but she saw how Alex looked at Maggie and she looked happier than Kara had seen her in a very long time. Winn scoffed. “Yeah, no way Alex Danvers dates someone who doesn’t own a firearm.”

Kara looked past Winn to see her sister walking toward the group, Maggie lagging behind. “Hey, guys. Uh, you all remember Maggie right?”

James’ entire forehead was full of wrinkles as he took in Alex and the detective. “Uh, yeah, good to see you again.”

J’onn was sitting across from Kara with a knowing smile on his face, being silent. Sometimes she forgot he could read minds so for how long he knew Alex was gay, Kara couldn’t tell. She wanted to give him a big hug for being respectful and not saying anything before. Winn was laughing uncomfortably. “Alex, I – I didn’t know. Did you know?”

J’onn looked at him the way he always looked when Winn was missing the point. “Of course I knew. I’m psychic.”

Alex had forgotten as well. “How come you never said anything before?”

He smiled at her. Kara sometimes thought he smiled at them the way he would have smiled at his own daughters and that left a warm feeling in her chest. “It’s not for me to say. Good for you, Alex.”

Alex smiled with J’onn’s praise. He really had taken her under his wing and even after the confusion with who he was in the beginning, Alex came to trust him completely. He was family.

Maggie whispered something to Alex but right then, Mon-El came over with a tray of drinks. He set the tray down with a nervous glance to Kara before retreating. There weren’t extra seats at the table but Maggie seemed to be perfectly comfortable and pointed at Winn. “Hey, do you play pool?”

No one believed him when he said yes. “It’s geometry with sticks, people.”

Winn went off with Maggie. James stood up and hugged Alex. “Congrats.”

J’onn passed them to the pool table. “Alex, my money’s on your girl.”

“Yes, thank you, mine too,” and she followed him away. That left Kara standing next to James. They hadn’t ever had a really good talk. Most of them had to do with Kara’s dislike of him being Guardian and his refusal to stop risking his life. “So, that’s good for Alex.”

She nodded. “Yeah, she seems really happy.”

He elbowed her. “You don’t.”

“What are you talking about? I’m so happy for her. She’s my –“

“I didn’t mean about her, Kara. I meant _you_ don’t seem happy.”

She weighed telling James about Lena against the past they had together but he had been the one to ask. It had been long enough; James wouldn’t care what it was about. “I went to talk to Lena. And before you start talking about whether you like it or not, she’s innocent and she’s my friend.”

“I wasn’t going to say anything. I don’t know exactly what I think about her anymore but I’m not going to change your mind no matter what I do.”

Kara figured that was good enough for the time being. They were either going to argue about Lena or about Guardian and letting one go was a relief. She was tired of the circles they had been going in. Kara had found that James rarely being around was due to his vigilante activity. She hated it.

“I went to see her after the virus. As Supergirl first to thank her and apologize but it just didn’t seem right. So, I went back, as me, to comfort her because she sent her own mother to jail. But, she basically sent me away like she didn’t have time for me. And yes, I know she’s super busy but she told the security guards to let me up whenever I’m there. She has never not wanted to see me. So, I had to leave but I don’t feel like we left things on a good note.

“Did she say something to make you think that?” James questioned. “No, she was nice but down to business. That’s why I went to see her as me because it was so official as Supergirl. I knew she wasn’t going to say how she really felt. And then she still didn’t. She pushed me out.”

“She’s been through a lot, Kara. I’m sure she's busy and I’m sure she has her own ways of dealing with grief and hurt. Some people work it out and Lena Luthor is a workaholic. Every time you’ve ever gone to see her, no matter what time of day or night, she’s in her office. It’s clear that’s where she spends most of her time and throwing herself into work might be how she is coping with everything that happened.”

Kara nodded because she had nothing to say. But it wasn’t true; she hadn’t only seen Lena at her office. She wanted to be there for Lena; she didn’t want to be pushed away. But if Lena needed time and space for herself, then Kara would respect that. Only, the last time she gave Lena space, it was against Lena’s own wishes. Alex scooted over. “What are you guys talking about?”

“Lena Luthor.” James made it sound like he was telling on Kara. She made a face at him.

“What about Lena Luthor?” Alex was intrigued.

James raised his eyebrows. “This seems like a sister talk so I’m just gonna -”

He crept away to watch Maggie who was destroying Winn at pool.

“I went to see her earlier. To thank her but she didn’t really seem like she wanted to see me. Which is just weird because we see each other almost every day and she’s never –“

“Since when do you see Lena Luthor every day? Is Snapper really that interested in her?” Alex questioned.

“Um…well…it’s not really for work, I guess. We kinda have an ongoing lunch thing?”

Alex’s eyes widened. “An ongoing lunch thing? An ongoing lunch thing.”

Alex kept repeating it, driving Kara mad. “What?”

“Nothing. I’m just trying to figure out what ‘ongoing lunch thing’ means?”

Kara sighed and words just flowed out her mouth without any thought, “Believe me, so was I until we kinda went on a couple dates.”

Alex’s mouth fell open. Kara almost went into more detail, feeling a stream of relief from finally coming clean to Alex. It felt good to tell someone, but Winn shot a pool ball so hard it went flying off the table and she had to duck to avoid impact.

 

James hadn’t called her in a while but their short conversation must have opened something up because he called her very late that night. She picked up immediately. “James?”

“Hey.” His voice was soft and calm; she stopped worrying that something was wrong. “Do you want to go to the garage? We haven’t been in a while and –“

“On one condition,” Kara interrupted because she had already made up her mind. Her relationship with James had been rocky since they broke up and then he started being a vigilante and then they disagreed about Lena. They never had a chance to talk without getting angry and arguing with each other. “You come as James Olsen.”

“Only if you come as Kara Danvers.”

She made a pit stop at the junkyard on the way and rigged up the car before he got there. The punching bag was lying forgotten in the corner. She jumped when his voice echoed around the mostly empty room, “Ready to get your rage on?”

She laughed, setting the bag up. “You remember how to do this?”

He squared up to the bag and she followed suit. They both punched and started laughing. It felt normal.

“Maybe we both forgot how to do this,” James commented.

“Talk first, Punch later.” Kara insisted, “You start.”

“I’m sick of people not understanding the point of Guardian.” _Thud. Thud. Thud._ Kara looked over at him but he wasn’t making eye contact. If that’s what he was going to bring up, she could match him.

“I’m tired of people thinking I’m weak.” _Crunch. Crunch._

“I hate acting as CEO of CatCo instead of being on the streets with my camera.” _Thud. Thud._

“I wish Snapper would give me half a chance.” _Crunch._

“I’m upset that you didn’t give us a chance.” _Thud._ It was a half-hearted punch and though Kara wanted to stop and talk, that was not the point and she didn’t want to take that away from him. _Thud._ “I’m upset that you don’t trust in Guardian.”

Kara’s fingers curled at the thought of trust. “I’m angry that my friends won’t trust me.”

 _Crunch._ Her punches were coming more frequently, not at the end of sentences but through them. “I wish Mon-El could be better. I don’t want to take care of him anymore. I want you to be safe. I want Alex to be happy. I’m furious that Cat left. I’m so mad that everyone is lying to me. I want everyone to let me do my job.”

“I’m frustrated that no one trusts Lena. I hate that her family is so horrible. I hate that I’m scared for her life all the time. I hate that she thinks she’s not worth it” – Kara roared and pummeled the metal, punching on each word – “I’m terrified that she is pushing. Me. Away.”

She had pushed through the heat behind her eyes, ignoring the tears running down her face. She was not sniffling. She was not sobbing. It wasn’t even crying; it was a release of energy. She ripped the car off the chains and tossed it across the room. It skidded across the floor and slammed into the wall. The sound echoed loudly and she grimaced as the noise reverberated in her ears. James was covering his own, staring at her in the silence after the storm.

This had been different than last time. She had known exactly all the reasons she was angry, none of it surprised her, but she had not let herself truly feel it.

“I shouldn’t have said I was upset with you.”

Her shoulders were heaving with deep breaths. “Yes, you should have. You are.”

“But I shouldn’t have done it here.”

“What would have been a better place?”

“Right after it happened so we could have moved on.” Kara didn’t argue with him because he was right. “And I’m not angry at you about it. I’m just disappointed that it ended so fast, especially after everything we went through to get to that point.

“It was my fault,” she said quickly. “I thought it was going to be something it never could be and when it wasn’t, I felt wrong. I ruined it. And I’m sorry. I’m so sorry about that.”

His forehead wrinkled. “I don’t think it really bothers me anymore but I think I needed to say it. And that’s not fair to you. For me to have brought it back up after all this time” - Kara opened her mouth to tell him it was okay but he stopped her – “And I know what you’re going to say but just accept it. It wasn’t right of me. I should have done it earlier instead of refusing to talk to you.”

Kara looked at her shuffling feet.

“You care about her.”

“I care about all of my friends.”

James chuckled. She knew he was trying to show they were okay now, that they could go back to normal but Kara didn’t believe him. They were never normal, per say. She had a crush on him since the first time she met him. And she loved him, she really did, but they never were able to be just friends before that point. It was going to be different. “You wrecked a car over her.”

“Technically, it was already totaled,” she pointed out.

“Kara.”

“What?”

“What is really going on with you and Lena Luthor?”

She looked at him, her shoulders slumping. “I don’t know.”

 

Then Kara was gone for an entire week and there was no way for her to talk to Lena again even if Lena had come to her. But Barry needed her help and who was she to refuse him? Aside from the Dominators and the mind control, meeting the teams from Earth One was amazing. She wished her own team had been there.

It took a while for Oliver to get comfortable with her and at first she was angry because he knew nothing about her. Then she saved his life and he seemed to realize she was not an alien out to get him. It was hard to swallow at first having just dealt with an organization trying to wipe out aliens, but she had to work with the team. Being benched wasn’t ideal but she took it in stride.

John Diggle looked like he was seeing a ghost every time he looked at her. Thea looked jealous. Ray Palmer wanted to know everything. Mick spent his time making lewd comments whenever he could. The nickname, “Skirt,” made Kara want to punch him in the face. And Sara Lance was…very forward. She oftentimes found herself heating and flushing; the discomfort made her squirm. That seemed to egg Sara on. Maybe they forgot about her super-hearing or maybe she hadn’t exactly mentioned it but after one bout of training in which she had sprawled the entire team across the warehouse floor, Thea was picking herself up and said, “She really is a badass.”

Sara Lance looked directly at her but Kara avoided her eyes. “Yeah, it’s kinda hot.”

Oliver had shouted, “Let’s go again,” so she had to quickly shake it off and watch as they tried to take her down. They didn’t.

But they did defeat the Dominators and though Kara hated to leave Barry, she never got to see him, she jumped in the portal back to her earth because there were people she missed.

What she wasn’t expecting was landing back in her apartment to Alex sitting at her counter, waiting for her. “Kara, you’re back.”

“What are you doing here?” Kara said as she changed out of her suit.

“Lillian Luthor broke out of jail…”

Thank Rao the window was open because Kara was already in the air. Alex called after her, “Kara wait! Lena’s a suspect.”

Kara didn’t even turn around to hear the explanation for that. She landed outside of L-Corp and rushed in. She was allowed right up and burst through the doors of Lena’s office. “Are you okay?”

“Kara?” Lena said, shocked at her sudden appearance.

Kara ignored her surprise. “Are you okay? I heard about your mother and I was worried.”

Lena stared at her, her gaze losing some of the shock and filling with disappointment. “You were MIA for a week. I tried to contact you. Silence. You didn’t even tell me you were going anywhere. And then you burst in here asking questions and wanting answers.”

Kara hadn’t contacted her because Lena had acted like she had wanted nothing to do with Kara. But it wasn’t the time to argue about that.

“Lena, I’m sorry. I can explain later but this is important.” Kara didn’t know why she said it, she had no explanation to give. “They think you did it. They think you helped your mother escape.”

“I went to the jail to see my mother, yes, but I’m the one who sent her there. That makes me a suspect? Just because I’m a Luthor?”

Kara looked around for the right words but there were none. “I-I-“

Lena’s smile couldn’t have been more sarcastic. “You think that’s something I would do?”

“I wanted you to know so that you’d be prepared.”

Lena turned away. “You’re sounding much more like a reporter than a friend right now.”

“No, I never would think that. I told you I trust you and I wasn’t lying.” The door to Lena’s office burst open again and in charged Maggie and a couple other NCPD officers with Jess’ effort to follow, futile. “Maggie? Did you find Lillian?”

Maggie’s badge was secured on her belt, a reminder of her role. “No, we’re here on official business, Kara. I think it would be best for you to wait outside. I need to talk to Ms. Luthor.”

“No,” Lena said and Kara set her bag on the floor, settling in. “I want her to stay.”

Kara was relieved. Baby steps. She crossed her arms.

Lena’s worried expression turned into nothing as she listened to Maggie charge her with a crime. There wasn’t anything that could be said, the footage was clearly of Lena. Kara was disheartened. It was the first time she had heard Lena’s voice unsteady, “That’s not me. I don’t know where you got that but that’s not me.”

“You’re under arrest for aiding and…” That was all Kara heard. But she watched Maggie handcuff Lena before she had enough.

“Hold on, Maggie. Let her explain.”

Maggie shook her head. “Stay out of it, Kara.”

Lena wouldn’t meet her eyes. “It’s okay.”

Kara had to watch as they led her out of the office. She couldn’t stop it; she wasn’t Supergirl but even if she was, Supergirl was supposed to work with the law. She was discouraged but she didn’t believe it for one second.

 

Kara had to fight with everyone. Lena was innocent. Snapper didn’t believe her. James agreed with him. Even after they spent the night in the garage and finally talked and he heard her say that no one trusted her anymore, he had the audacity to revert to that mindset. He thought she was blind to it all when really he was the one that couldn’t see. “The only thing that Lena had done is help.”

“She betrayed her mother. What’s to stop her from pulling a con on you? I know she’s your friend but Lena’s bad news.”

Nothing Lena did was ever good enough for anyone. Kara shook her head, disgusted with him. “Why? Because she’s a Luthor?”

“No, because she’s guilty. You don’t see that, but I’m going to prove it to you.”


	6. Chapter 6

When they found out that the video had been altered to frame Lena, Kara had to stop herself from going around and personally saying, “I told you so” to every single person who had doubted, specifically James. It was a lot of people. The entirety of the DEO. But along with that came the news that Lena had broken out of jail. Kara didn’t believe for one second that Lena had anything to do with her own escape. She was sure Lillian must have had some hand in it. She stormed into the DEO, demanding answers that no one could give her. Alex eventually pulled her into a hallway. “Kara, settle down.”

“They took Lena, Alex! She put Lillian in jail. Who knows what they could be doing to her right now. I have to find her,” Kara’s voice was strained. Alex squeezed her shoulder. “We will. You don’t have to do this by yourself.”

Kara’s voice cracked, “I have to save her.”

Alex pulled her into a tight hug. “I know she’s your friend, Kara.”

Kara shook her head, feeling a band of worry tighten around her chest. “You know it’s more than that, Alex. There’s so much going on right now and we haven’t been able to have an actual conversation since I left to help Barry. And I just disappeared on her.”

“And you missed a lot of lunch dates.” Alex wasn’t an idiot and Kara had caught onto the looks that she would shoot her whenever Kara was viciously defending Lena.

“I know you’re trying to cheer me up, but the longer we wait the worse it could be for her. We have to go.” As if on cue, Winn ran in breathless. “We’ve got a location. But if these numbers are right, the place is gonna blow.”

“Blow?” Kara repeated. J’onn wanted Winn to rebuild the anti-Kryptonite vests but even if they weren’t in pieces, Kara wasn’t waiting. “I have to go now or Lena’s dead.”

Winn gave her minutes. Alex wanted her to come back immediately because if she were anywhere near the explosion she would be dead. If Kara had been there to see Alex’s face, she might not have been able to leave. But she wasn’t there and she was flying faster than she had ever pushed herself before. She had to get to Lena.

She dove through the ceiling, landing across the room from Lena, Lillian and Metallo. She had hoped to never see him again. Lena took steps toward her, obviously amazed by the turn of events. “Supergirl. You’re here?”

There were so many things that she wanted to say to Lena. To apologize. To promise. But they didn’t have much time and she was in the suit. It wouldn’t make any sense to Lena if the words came from her so she said the only thing she could think of, “Kara Danvers believes in you.”

It sounded wrong and cheesy and out of place when Supergirl was the one coming to the rescue, but when all this was over, it would be the thing that meant the most. She didn’t have time to assess the situation before Lillian let off a sound so high-pitched that she crumpled to the ground, clutching at her head. She could barely hear but Lena was shoved to the ground, yelling, “Don’t hurt her!”

After what Lillian and Metallo had done, Supergirl still tried to save them all but they wouldn’t believe her. Even with Metallo’s kryptonite pulsing unsteadily, her words wouldn’t take hold. He shot Kryptonite at her and she heard Winn in her ear telling her she had even less time. Alex was next, “Get out of there. Now!”

Lillian was nowhere to be found. Metallo was still shooting streams of kryptonite at her; it was becoming more and more unstable with each blow. Lena was lying motionless on the floor.

J’onn appeared. “Get Lena. Let’s go.”

“Kara, please!” Alex pleaded.

“Supergirl, get out of there now.”

She ran to Lena just as the kryptonite in Metallo was about to explode. She scooped an unconscious Lena into her arms and flew, J’onn on her tail, the explosion trailing after but never touching her.

 

She had to jimmy open the sliding glass door, doing her best not to break it, to get into Lena’s apartment. After a quick x-ray, Alex’s stamp of approval that Lena had no lasting injuries, just a couple of bruises, and with a dose of pain medication as an added measure, Supergirl was cleared to take her home.

Lena had started to come to but was groggy. Supergirl looked around, x-raying through the walls to find Lena’s bedroom. She couldn’t tell which one it was. None of them had any distinguishing factors. Instead, she chose to lay her on the couch. She set her down gently and tried to straighten up but Lena reached out and held onto her cape. “Supergirl?”

“Ms. Luthor, you’re safe now,” Supergirl whispered. Lena shuddered on the couch, pulling the cape closer. Supergirl almost fell over but she bent down on one knee, steadying herself.

Lena’s eyes were fluttering. “Thank you.”

Supergirl unclasped the cape from her suit, laying it across Lena and finally standing up. But she had mistaken what Lena had wanted. “No. Stay.”

Supergirl looked back. “Ms. Luthor, you need to rest. You’ve been given some medication so you’ll fall asleep very soon. You should feel okay tomorrow.”

Lena didn’t say anything so Supergirl started moving back toward the door. She could come back for her cape in the morning. But then Lena spoke again, her voice weak, “Why?”

“Why what?” Supergirl turned around.

“Why do you always try to save me?” The question caught her off guard. There were a lot of reasons, some of them only Kara would say.

“That’s what I do. My job is to protect the city and the people who live here.” It was the standard answer.

Lena shook her head, the pillow rustling. “But why me? Why do I deserve anything knowing who my family is?”

“It's not about deserving. We are not our families” – Kara wished Lena would believe that for once – “The only thing you have ever done is try to help. You will always be worth it.”

She slipped up on that last bit but Lena was half asleep so the probability of her remembering the entire conversation was low as it were. Lena mumbled unintelligibly and Kara smiled, watching Lena as she fell asleep. 

Once she was certain Lena was going to stay asleep, once she measured her heartbeat to make sure it was normal, once Lena’s breath became heavy and steady, only then did Kara shut the door quietly and take off into the sky. The air dragged at her different without her cape and she had to recalculate her turns and landing but she didn’t regret leaving it behind.

 

Kara’s office was filled with flowers. Snapper gave her his version of an apology by publishing her piece, unlinking Lena to any of Cadmus’ crimes. James shortly after. She took Snapper’s assignment as an excuse to see Lena, which she had wanted to do ever since that night. On her way to L-Corp, she stopped to get donuts. She opened the doors quietly after Jess told her she could go in. Lena was lounging in her desk chair, reading something off her laptop and biting her nails. That was something new that Kara had never seen before. She knew it was a bad habit but seeing Lena do it made it seem not so bad.

Lena wasn’t expecting her but she seemed relieved to see Kara, standing up and rounding her desk. “Snapper Carr hasn’t sent you here to get more, has he?”

“Well, actually he has but I didn’t come for that. I’m here as a friend” - Kara held out the bag of donuts - “I thought you could use some fried, sugary goodness in your life. You eat donuts, right?”

Lena had been seated on the edge of her desk but stood up, pinching the top of the bag and pulling it out of Kara’s hands. “Well, I am human.”

Kara laughed a little too hard at Lena’s ‘human’ comment. She was an alien after all but Alex would argue that she didn’t eat donuts as much as she inhaled them. They sat on Lena’s couch.

Lena picked up a maple donut and was pulling it apart. “I read the article. It was good.”

Kara had a powdered sugar one which she instantly regretted as it was leaving a trail. She also didn’t want to talk about work. “So, my office is overflowing with flowers?”

Lena acted oblivious as she took a bite. “Really?”

A slow smile crept across her face and Kara laughed. “You didn’t have to do that.”

“Yeah” - she nodded - “I did. Supergirl told me that it was you who sent her. I don’t know how to thank you.”

Her gaze was so intense that Kara almost couldn’t meet it. Lena was leaning forward on the couch, her arm resting on the back of it.

“Well,” Kara gulped, “That’s what friends are for.”

“I know I seemed angry with you for disappearing on me before all of this happened but, in reality, I’ve never had a friend like you before. Come to think of it, I’ve never had family like you,” Lena said. And that was when everything changed. It didn’t matter if Lena meant that Kara’s family was entirely different than her own, which it was, or that Kara was becoming her family. 

She was setting the donut back on the table, licking the icing off her fingers. Kara tried not to watch but it was distracting. She sat back, reasonably closer to Kara than before. “No one has ever stood up for me like that.”

Kara was concentrating very hard on looking at Lena, keeping eye contact. “Now you have someone who will stand up for you, always.”

Lena licked her lips. “Well, Supergirl may have saved me but Kara Danvers, you are my hero.”

Kara couldn’t drag her eyes away from Lena with the way the woman was staring at her and Lena’s eyes flickered to her lips before they narrowed. She leaned in, finger rising close to Kara’s face. “You have something right…there.”

She wiped the white sugar off the side of Kara’s mouth but Lena’s hand stayed, holding Kara’s cheek. Kara would have been lying to herself if this wasn’t what she had expected. This was it. It explained Kara’s nerves whenever she was around Lena and her constant desire to be around Lena. It explained why she got excited whenever Lena texted her. It explained her fierce need to come to the rescue no matter what danger she herself would be put in. Even after telling each other how they felt and the promise of starting something, she wouldn’t let herself wholly accept it because of the implications. Of what it could mean to Lena if she was dating Supergirl. Not that Kara had any intention of telling her; she wouldn’t be safe if she knew. But Kara knew that even as Supergirl, she would be worried about Lena. Alex and J’onn wouldn’t like it one bit; it was too much of a liability.

But Lena’s fingers were slowly stroking her face, gauging her reaction and Kara stopped thinking about the repercussions. Kara smiled and leaned into her hand. That was all Lena needed to close the distance. Her lips were soft and easy against Kara’s. As Lena kissed her, Kara felt like she was flying and had to consciously make sure she wasn’t actually leaving the ground. She wasn’t sure what to do with her hands though she was more concentrated on not breaking Lena’s face. There had been a number of incidents of broken noses in her past; she’d rather Lena’s face stay intact.

It was sensory overload that Kara really didn’t mind. Lena was the one who pulled away first. Kara swallowed, keeping her eyes closed for a few seconds longer. “That was –“

“Out of order?” Lena was still very close to Kara’s face. “I really was expecting to take you on a date first.”

“Technically we’ve already been on two,” Kara responded, grabbing Lena’s face and pulling her back in.

 

“So, this changes things,” Lena commented, pulling back from a kiss that lasted long enough for Kara to need to breathe but not long enough for her to memorize every minute detail about how Lena kissed. The smile on Kara’s face was involuntary and wide. “Maybe I should have asked this before but you’re not still mad at me, are you? We never really discussed the whole MIA situation before well, before you were wrongly arrested.”

Kara didn’t know why she was bringing it up; she didn’t have an alibi ready to give Lena for her absence. “Well, I hope that you don’t leave me in the dark anymore but at that point, I don’t think I had the right to expect you to answer to me. I had been rather rude to you beforehand. I was only worried and a lot of things were going on when you came to see me and the anger was misdirected.”

“I should’ve at least given you a heads up, you deserved that.”

Lena chuckled. “I kicked you out of my office, I’m not sure I deserved anything.”

Kara shrugged. She didn’t want to get into an argument with Lena now that she found out there were a lot nicer things to do with her.

“We’re both screw-ups,“ Kara jokingly commented.

“That doesn’t bode well for the beginning of our relationship,” Lena pondered.

Kara sharply turned her head. “Relationship?”

Lena’s head bowed; it was a shy move that was misplaced on Lena. “It was my hope. If that’s what you want.”

After everything, Kara finally knew exactly what she wanted. Kissing Lena was like nothing ever before, it was like something clicked. It was what had changed between her and James that had caused them to finish before they started. But she had never had a stable relationship outside of her family and close friends. Romance didn’t bode well for a superhero. Nothing ever stuck. She was terrified that she wanted it to work so badly that she would fail. She couldn’t fail with Lena. When things clicked, she couldn’t just walk away. “I want that too.”

“I’m glad,” Lena said, kissing her again. It already felt normal, like she had been kissing Lena for years. She stopped the kiss before Kara was ready for it to end. “But I’m still taking you on a date. A real one. How is tomorrow night?”

Kara would have canceled any plans but fortunately she didn’t have anything pressing. “That sounds incredible.”

“Okay, well, wear something nice.”

Kara pouted. “Is it gonna be fancy again?”

“If I’m taking you out, I’m treating you,” Lena said pointedly, standing up from the couch.

“But I would be totally cool with ordering a pizza and watching a movie.”

Lena gestured nonchalantly with her hand. “And when it’s your turn, I would love to do that with you.”

“Ugh, fine, fancy it is,” Kara agreed. She wasn’t complaining because any date with Lena would be wonderful. It was the whole finding something to wear debacle that was irksome. “Soooo….”

“So, if we’re going on a date, you should probably get going. I have planning to do. And I’ll call you later about it, okay?”

Kara smiled. “To be fair, I’ll probably call you first.”

“I’ll be waiting.” Lena leaned over, leaving a soft kiss on Kara’s cheek. She left the office red-faced, trying to avoid Jess’ inquisitive look.


	7. Chapter 7

Kara flung the door open wide, almost hurling it off the hinges. Alex was wide-eyed on the other side. But other than that, her face was bored. “I have a job. At the DEO. Where I’m supposed to be right now.”

Kara was desperate. “Well, I have like, a first official date tomorrow night and I need you to help me pick out what to wear. I win.”

“You have a _what_?” Alex said, bearing down on Kara who was taking steps back. Alex flung the door shut almost as hard as Kara had opened it.

“Ummm…I mean we’ve already gone on a couple dates but like this is officially a date."

Alex looked frozen in the middle of the kitchen. “Alex, I told you –“

She stuck a hand out. “Yes, but I’m processing. We haven’t really talked about it though” – she let out a deep breath, relaxing – “Why do you do this to me?”

Kara could feel her smile strained in anticipation of Alex’s response. “Because I’m your sister and you love me.”

Alex rolled her eyes. “So a real date now, huh?”

Kara grabbed Alex’s hand and skipped, pulling Alex behind her, into her room. Clothes were everywhere. She couldn’t find one outfit that seemed nice enough. “Well, yeah, it makes sense since we’re dating now.”

Alex flipped Kara around which usually wasn’t possible, but Kara was distracted at the moment. “Since when have you been dating Lena Luthor?”

Kara’s shoulders rose to her ears. “Since we kissed about two hours ago.”

“YOU KISSED LENA LUTHOR AND YOU DIDN’T TELL ME?”

Kara’s eyes widened in shock. “I’M TELLING YOU NOW. IT JUST HAPPENED A COUPLE HOURS AGO.”

“OH MY GOD.”

“ALEX, WHY ARE WE YELLING?”

Alex let out a deep breath. “Sorry. It’s a lot to take in.”

“What? You kissed Maggie,” Kara stated.

Alex was acting very weird about the whole situation but Kara wasn’t expecting Alex’s laugh. “Not that, Kara. It just happened so fast.”

“Um about that. Yeah, it really hasn’t,” Kara admitted. This was the part where Alex got mad because she had been keeping secrets. “It kinda started when Kal was still here. He’s the one who pointed it out.”

“That was months ago,” Alex said. Her voice had gone soft and Kara could hear the dejected notes to her speech. “And I told you I was gay almost exactly when I figured it out.”

“I know. And I knew you were going to be upset with me for keeping secrets. But I didn’t know what was going on. And then a lot of stuff was happening with Supergirl and it never seemed like the right time. I tried to tell you one day but that was the day you came over to my apartment and came out to me and I couldn’t take that away from you. I didn’t want to make it about me when it really needed to be about you, so I didn’t say anything,” Kara spouted. “And I really don’t want you to be mad at me because I don’t know what I would do if you were disappointed in me.”

Alex hesitated but a small smile slipped onto her face. “Are you using my own words against me?”

“They’re really good,” Kara said, trying not to smile too big.

Alex pulled her into a hug. “No more secrets, okay? Not from me.”

“Of course,” Kara said, squeezing Alex.

Alex coughed. “Oh-okay Kara, t-too tight.”

Kara let go. “Sorry. I’m excited.”

Alex grimaced and rubbed her side. “Yeah, I can feel it.”

Kara put her hands on her hips and looked around the room. It was a disaster she couldn’t figure out. Alex clapped. “Okay, so what have you got?”

“Nothing. Lena said to dress nice. I think it’s fancy.”

Alex rooted through the clothes while Kara watched. She had already been through them all; she didn’t care to see the lack of options again. Alex stood up. She was searching the room for something. “Wait, don’t you have a…”

She went over to the closet and reached into the back corner, grabbing something. When she pulled it out, Kara shook her head, embarrassed. “No, I’m not wearing that.”

“Then why do you have it, Kara?” Alex pointed out.

Kara stammered, “I don’t know. I just haven’t gotten rid of anything in a while. I put it in the back so I don’t have to see it." 

Alex shoved the hanger into her chest. “Wear it. Blue’s your color. You’re welcome. I should really be at work. But we’re discussing this later.”

“Thanks?” Kara called after her sister, not entirely sure if she was grateful for Alex’s help or not.

 

“Hi.”

“Hi.”

“Were you waiting?”

“I told you I would be.”

“But you’re still at work?”

Lena chuckled and Kara could almost see her biting her lip. It had been a habit Kara noticed a long time ago and done her best to ignore because it was very distracting and she no longer felt like she had an obligation to ignore it. “Yes, I am still at the office.”

Kara had the urge to fly over there but she wouldn’t have a very good explanation for that and Lena had made it sound like they shouldn’t see each other until their date, something about spoiling it. Kara didn’t think that was possible; she always liked to see Lena. But in the past half-day, everything had changed and she could finally fall into the feelings she had been keeping at bay. It made everything seem different and so much more important. “You shouldn’t work so much.”

“I have a company to run, Kara.”

“I know,” Kara concurred. “That just seems like a thing people say.”

They waited in comfortable silence. “I’m guessing you called for a reason.”

“Not really,” she admitted to Lena. “I called because I said I would probably call you first. I’m not good at waiting.”

“You won’t have to wait any longer then,” Lena responded, humored. “I made all the plans for tomorrow night.”

“Aaaaaaaand?” Kara egged on, bouncing on her bed.

“And,” Lena repeated, “ I will be picking you up at six tomorrow night. Did you find something to wear?”

“Yes. But what else?” Kara urged.

“That’s all you get, Miss Danvers.” Kara groaned, stealing another laugh from Lena. “I’m glad you called but I should finish up here. I don’t want to be late tomorrow evening.”

“Definitely not,” Kara agreed.

 

Kara got less than nothing done at CatCo the next day but Snapper was too busy throwing his anger in other directions to pay her much attention. The man really did have anger management problems. Instead of work, during her paid hours she was coming up with what she thought Lena had possibly planned for her date and some of her ideas were very far out impossibilities that only made her fidgety.

 

 **Lena (5:59pm)** _I’m waiting outside whenever you’re ready_  

Kara looked in the mirror, trying to find some bit of extra space in the dress to fit into but instead she huffed, feeling self-conscious as she always did whenever she wore something like it. She pulled at the material that snapped back into place as she let go and squirmed. Lena was waiting for her outside and she didn’t want to make them late in case it screwed up Lena’s plans. Besides, she had spent the last half hour messing with the dress to no avail.

Upon seeing Lena outside, she paused, thinking she had made an error. Lena was standing on the sidewalk outside of the car. Her eyes widened. “Wow, Kara. Just wow, you look gorgeous.”

Lena had on tight red pants and a loose, sleeveless blouse with black heels. It was close to how she had been dressed for the L-Corp gala. Kara felt very overdressed in her presence. The dress Alex had chosen for her was a deep blue and hugged her body, stopping about halfway down her thigh. She had on dark grey, strappy heels. Kara stepped onto the sidewalk. “I thought this was fancy.”

“I never said fancy” - Lena laughed at her expense - “That was all you.”

Kara threw her hands up. “Then why didn’t you tell me when I called it fancy that that’s not what you meant?”

“Kara, I’ve only ever seen you in a sweater. I just assumed you had a fancy sweater you were planning on wearing.” Lena looked her up and down, biting her lip. “I was not expecting this.”

Kara pouted and Lena leaned in, landing a kiss on her temple. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy it very much.”

Her breath was hot on Kara’s ear. Alex had explained the sensation of goose-bumps before and Kara was sure this was one of those moments. Lena opened the door for her. “And besides, you will fit in perfectly where we're going.”

Kara slid across the backseat, allowing Lena to get comfortable. “And where is that?”

“You’ll see.”

First, Lena took her to a restaurant, where they had a private dinner on the roof. It was decorated: lights were strung up, a table was set with candles, there was soft music playing in the background. The restaurant itself looked extravagant, Kara couldn’t imagine what Lena had to do to get this setup. Of course, Kara often forgot who exactly Lena Luthor was to most people in the city so it probably only took a phone call.

The next stop was outside a theatre. When Kara read the marquee, she squealed, jumping from the car in a way she should have avoided with the dress she was wearing. But she couldn’t bring herself to care as she jumped around the sidewalk like a kid. Lena was waving off the driver and watching Kara until she exhausted herself. “I can’t believe you!”

“You said it was your favorite,” Lena answered.

Kara threw her arms around Lena. “I didn’t think you’d remember that. This is incredible. Oh my god, I’m so excited." 

Lena laughed. “ I can see that.”

She took Kara’s hand in hers and led her into the theatre. Orchestra seats. _Orchestra seats_. Kara couldn’t emphasize that enough. The lights went down with Kara’s hand still rested softly and contentedly in Lena’s.

 

“Alex! Alex!” Her sister wasn’t answering the door. Kara flew around the building to the window but couldn’t see anyone inside. She pulled at the latch and it was open. She tiptoed in. “Alex, wake up. Wake up. You won’t be –“

“KARA!” A light flicked on and Alex was sitting up in bed, wide-eyed, with the sheets pulled up to her neck. Maggie’s head was peeking out from the covers as well. Kara’s hand flew to cover her eyes. “Oh my god. Oh my god”

She pointed in the general direction of the door. “I’m just gonna…”

She tripped over a rug and ran into a table before she made it the to the door, which she shut quickly. Kara stood in the middle of the hallway, her muscles tight with shock and mortification. Alex had always shown herself into Kara’s apartment and vice versa; she never once imagined that she shouldn’t just go in. She hadn’t even tried honing in to hear anything or using her x-ray vision. She was too excited for that waste of time.

But she hadn’t brought her key with her because she hadn’t been expecting to go to Alex’s so she had flown through the window and Maggie…Kara felt like beating her head against the wall. How was Kara supposed to explain the fact that she had entered through the window and not the door? She facepalmed and fell against the wall, hoping that Alex knew she was standing outside.

Eventually the door opened to reveal Alex. She didn’t look angry per say but a mix of frustration and disapproval and Kara just gave her, her best “pretty please” face until Alex sighed. “Just come in, Kara.”

She awkwardly waved to Maggie who was sitting at the dining table, clearly wearing one of Alex’s shirts. Alex, on the other hand, had wrapped a robe around herself. When Maggie saw her, she looked impressed. “Damn, Kara.”

Alex pivoted on the spot. “Do not hit on my sister.”

“Ew, gross. No offense, Kara,” Maggie said. Kara shrugged. “That dress is killer though.”

Alex shook her head. “Why on Earth did you come barging through my door at -?”

“Oh, give it up already,” Maggie intervened. They both turned on the spot, the same look of bewilderment on their faces. Maggie continued, unperturbed by their reactions. “The door never opened. The window is open. You came through the window.”

“No – what – how in…pft…of course I –“ Kara blustered.

Alex was resigned. “You know.”

“Alex" - her tone was soft, empty of accusation - “You kicked me out of the DEO once because Supergirl went missing. The only person you get that torn up about is Kara.”

Alex’s sigh of relief was audible and Kara couldn’t blame her; she knew how hard it was to hide the secret from one of the people closest to you. She had been doing it for months with Lena. Maggie rolled her eyes at Kara. “Plus, the glasses don’t help.”

“I told you that!” Alex added. Kara pointed at her sister. “Do not team up against me. And besides, no one has ever figured it out. She’s a detective. It’s her job to detect.”

“Cat almost did,” Alex said shrewdly.

“Yeah…well, I fixed that problem,” Kara retorted.

“Good thing J’onn’s a shape-shifter,” Alex punched back.

“Okay, well that one’s news,” Maggie said, interested.

Kara smiled, playfully. “Someone’s gonna have paperwork to do tomorrow.

Alex groaned and fell into the chair next to her girlfriend. “Why are you here, Kara?”

Apparently there was something that could make her push Lena to the back of her mind and that was accidentally walking in on her sister and her sister’s girlfriend. But now that she was asked, images of the night flooded back in.

“That’s a smile if I’ve ever seen one," Alex commented and after a few seconds, realization hit. “Oh yeah! Your date!”

“Little Danvers went on a date? Do tell,” Maggie leaned onto the table.

Kara sat down but immediately stood back up when she started talking, pacing Alex’s apartment. “It was so amazing, Alex. We went to dinner and she had made –“

“Wait,” Maggie stopped her. “She? Neither of the Danvers sisters are straight? Incredible." 

Alex lightheartedly shoved her back into the chair. “Sssh.”

Kara was glowering at Maggie. “Are you done?”

“Go on.” Maggie put her hands up in surrender.

“She picked me up and let me tell you, I was way too fancy. Well, maybe. I don’t know how to judge that. But she looked unbelievable. We went to this restaurant and they served us dinner on the rooftop. Just us. Under these beautiful lights and candles and it was so nice. And we just talked. And then you won’t believe it” – Kara sat down again, holding onto Alex’s arm – “We went to see a play. And it was _The Wizard of Oz_!”

“Wow,” Alex said, impressed.

Kara was rapidly tapping her feet against the floor, her voice octaves higher than usual. “I know! It was incredible. She’s so sweet and like I knew that already but she remembered my favorite movie. I don’t even remember talking about that with her. And then she took me home and I tried to kiss her and she wouldn’t because it was our first date but then –“

“You used your puppy face on Lena Luthor and it worked?” Alex asked, incredulous.

There was a scraping of wood against wood and Maggie abruptly stood up. She wasn’t looking at either of them. “Lena Luthor? I arrested the woman Little Danvers is dating. What the hell.”

“Wrongly arrested,” Kara interjected.

Maggie looked at her. “Do we want to get into this argument again?”

Alex put her arms out, pulling Maggie back down into a chair. “And you’re okay with this, Alex? Kara dating a Luthor?”

This time Kara stood up, furious. “You don’t even know her! Why does everyone think she’s this terrible person. She’s amazing and I trust her. Everything she has ever done is to help Supergirl and help this city” – she pointed a finger accusingly at Alex – “And I don’t remember you or J’onn or anyone else at the DEO going to thank her for stopping her mother. I’m the only one who did that. Even after she proved she was on our side. I would appreciate if everyone would stop being so critical of my girlfriend.

“Girlfriend?” Alex asked. Apparently, that was the most important part of Kara’s speech that she picked out. “Not too fast?”

Kara just waved her hand between Maggie and Alex like they could talk. “Lena and I have been friends for months, okay?”

“Okay,” Alex agreed, “But, you didn’t mention that earlier.”

Kara shuffled her feet. “Okay, well I haven’t actually mentioned it to Lena either but I’m pretty sure that’s what we are."

“Aside from whether Lena is bad news -”

“She’s not.”

“-or not,” Maggie finished. “I wouldn’t want anyone I knew to get messed up in that family. I’m surprised that Alex hasn’t brought this up.”

“Oh, believe me, I’ve said this many times. So has J’onn. So has James. But I don’t want Kara to throw me into a wall so I’ve given up that fight. Besides” – Alex continued when she saw the look on Kara’s face – “I trust Kara. And if Kara trusts Lena then I’m going to try to do so as well. It doesn’t hurt that Superman pretty much gave his stamp of approval before any of us knew this was going on.”

Maggie’s hand went to her forehead. “Clark Kent. Wow, it all makes sense now. But the Luthor’s biggest rival, Superman, is okay with you dating a Luthor?”

“He’s the one who told me Lena liked me. So I’m sure he is. I forgot to call him to tell him. You think I could call him now?” Once the idea was out there, Kara couldn’t wait to tell Kal. She’d probably hear, “I told you so,” but she would put up with that. She wanted to tell everyone about Lena right away but it was late. She was gonna end up calling Kal anyway; she knew she wasn’t going to be able to wait. She answered her own question before Alex could tell her not to. “I’m gonna call him.”

She took her phone out on the tiny balcony outside Alex’s apartment. It only rang a few times before a groggy, “Kara?”

“Kal!”

“Is something wrong?”

“No, no. I’m sorry. No, nothing’s wrong,” Kara said. “I wanted to tell you something.”

She heard rustling and then, “Clark, who is that?”

“Oh, tell Lois I’m sorry I woke her up,” Kara apologized.

“You’re not sorry you woke me up, though?” His voice became farther away from the phone, “It’s Kara.”

“Not really,” Kara admitted. “Because you won’t guess what just happened.”

“Okay, Kara. Tell me,” he sighed.

She grabbed hold of the railing in front of her. “I’m dating Lena Luthor!”

There was silence on his end for too long. “Kal? Kal?”

“Oh.”

“Wait,” Kara said, “Are you mad?”

“No,” he said, “You know my history with them and before you get mad at me, I know Lena is not the same as her brother. But that is the type of Luthor that I was used to so I just have to get used to a new kind. I’ve only seen her a couple times, I don’t have the same perception of her as you have."

“Okay, it’s just weird because you’re the one who started all of this,” Kara said dejectedly. She would have enjoyed Kal’s teasing a lot more than this.

“Kara, don’t be upset. Please."

“It’s just…no one understands and everyone thinks I need to watch my back. It’s frustrating. I really, really like her.”

His voice lightened and she could imagine the smile on his face. “I’m happy that you’re happy, Kara. That’s all I want for you.”

“Thanks, Kal.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t react how you wanted me to.”

Kara laughed a little. “I guess I can’t dictate how you feel about something. But thanks for letting me disturb you so late. Tell Lois I said hi.”

“Hi, Kara,” she heard Lois’ voice.    

“Night, Kal.”

“Bye, Kara.”

 


	8. Chapter 8

Small things were the only differences between Kara and Lena’s relationship. Lunches turned into dinners. Lena would surprise Kara at her apartment if she didn’t work too late and they would cuddle on the couch and watch a movie. Kara learned Jess’ coffee and food order for when she knew Lena had skipped breakfast. Lena’s apartment was not off-limits but at the moment, they both preferred Kara’s.

There was one large difference. The day after their first date, Kara woke up to a text from Winn.

**Winn (8:04am)** _Have you seen this?_

There was a link. Kara clicked on it and it opened up to an article. She was surprised at the image at the top: Lena holding her hand, walking her into the theatre. The title read: _“Who is the CEO’s mystery woman?”_

Kara’s forehead creased, she could feel the crinkle. She wouldn’t necessarily qualify herself as a “mystery woman.” She was a CatCo reporter with some important articles under her belt that had gained some traction. Then again, it wasn’t like her face was plastered all over her articles. Alex and J’onn would both be relieved; it meant her persona was still very secret. They wouldn’t be so pleased that her face was being picked up by the paparazzi.

Kara saw the reporters that swarmed Lena on a daily basis but Lena had never before mentioned paparazzi. Kara had never had reason to watch out for them.

**Sent (8:10am)** _Hey_

**Lena (8:11am)** _I am so sorry_

**Sent (8:11am)** _It’s not your fault. I just wasn’t sure if you knew_

**Lena (8:12am)** _But I am sorry_

Kara wasn’t particularly annoyed. They hadn’t started rooting around her personal life...yet. She knew it was a possibility, especially when she as seen more often with Lena, which she hoped would be in their future. She would have to be a lot more careful. But there was no reason for Lena to feel like any of it was her fault. She couldn’t help her name or that people were nosey. She couldn’t hide away and Kara refused to. She smiled at the look on Lena’s face if anyone ever tried to tell her that was for the best. The snark would be paramount.

 **Sent (8:12am)** _I don’t mind being_ your _mystery woman ;)_

**Lena (8:13am)** _You’re incredible. Seriously. Not everyone would take to being photographed without their knowledge as easily as you are_

She may have had enough practice as Supergirl. Everyone was watching her then.

**Sent (8:14am)** _It’s worth it_

 

It didn’t take long for things to progress and it started with Lena saying, “So, I haven’t seen Supergirl in a while.”

It was an offhanded comment; Lena wasn’t even looking at her while she said it but mixing a salad at the counter. “I’m not surprised. I haven’t heard anything from my mother recently so I suppose there's nothing new.”

Kara focused even harder on looking through the take-out menus that she already had memorized. “Uh-huh.”

Lena’s heart wasn’t beating any quicker than usual and her voice was calm. “Kara?”

“I haven’t either. It’s been quiet in National City. I’m sure she’s still out there,” Kara said, losing track of which restaurant she was supposed to be searching for. “I don’t mean your mother…but also her, I guess.”

Kara stopped herself before she dug a deeper hole. Lena still hadn’t opened up much about her family and it was never a topic Kara brought up if she could help it.

“Did I ever tell you that she’s not my real mother? I was adopted when I was four.”

Kara lost interest in the menus, instead, turning to Lena who was still staring at the salad, holding the spoons in the bowl but not moving. She realized she should have picked up on it before. She always talked about how Lena was not like her family and about how the Luthor name didn’t define her; it only made sense. Her face flashed to indecision and Kara feared she was retreating. She hopped up onto the counter next to Lena. “I’d like to hear whatever you have to say.”

That caught Lena’s attention and she smiled sadly. Kara pulled her closer. Lena stood between her legs, fingers dancing across Kara's thighs as she thought. Kara reached out to play with a strand of hair, the black silk slipping through her fingers. She dropped it when Lena started talking; fingers kept dancing. “Lionel is the one who brought me home. Lillian wasn’t happy. I’m not sure he had asked her, for obvious reasons. I think he had chosen himself to do it. But she smiled anyway and welcomed me. I could feel the coldness coming from her. She introduced me to Lex who hugged me instantly. He was the first real family I had. I felt close to him like I never did with Lionel and Lillian. We were both kids in a household that was not full of love. He taught me chess though I only pretended I didn’t know the game” - she became amused - “How ridiculous was it that I already knew the intricacies of chess at the age of four? I don’t even remember how I learned it. One day, I just knew how to play. I’m sure that’s some blurry memory from my childhood that I couldn’t quite hold on to.”

She finally looked Kara in the eyes. Kara’s eyebrows had grown toward each other but she was smiling. “What’s that face for?”

“I’m picturing baby you playing chess.”

Lena playfully slapped her leg. “Don’t make fun of me. What were you doing when you were four?”           

Kara lost all sense of humor. She was on Krypton, running around her home as her Aunt Astra chased her through the hallways, laughter echoing everywhere. She felt a hand on her cheek and shook her head. She had zoned out entirely. Lena was searching her eyes. “Where’d you go?”

“Home,” Kara said before thinking. Lena stroked her cheek, pushing a falling strand of hair behind her ear. Kara reached out and played with Lena’s fingers. “Tell me about Lex.”

“You know all about him already,” Lena’s voice became hard. 

“I didn’t know him then.”

“I think you do,” Lena responded harshly. “I think I was just an ignorant child.”

“Lena,” Kara murmured. “He was your brother. And you loved him. Tell me about that Lex.”

Lena bounced their hands off of Kara’s thighs. “That’s what I mean. I think he was always this Lex. I’m not sure how he couldn’t be with the parents we had. Obviously, when he was really little he was just a boy but he was already being brought up in the Luthor way. It was cold and harsh and family existed to be used until they weren’t useful anymore. He was the warmest to me when I was young because he wanted someone he could teach and he had found that person. I idolized him and looked up to him unlike anyone else ever had and he thrived off of that attention. It fed him. I was just a plaything for him and I didn’t realize that until I was much older.”

“We kept in touch for a time. When he left for college and when I went to college. I knew Clark Kent a long time before the two of you barged into my office asking me questions.” She was smiling so Kara knew she was only joking. Barging was a little extensive for how that day had gone. “Lex was always extremely supportive but he was also extremely critical. He thought I could do bigger and better things. Nothing I accomplished was enough but he thought of himself that way too so I didn’t take it to heart too much. He berated himself for not being good enough. But when he started telling me about these radical ideas, I realized what he was working on was unethical and dangerous. He wanted me to join him and I couldn’t find any resolve to do that. I didn’t truly believe in what he was doing." 

“Lionel was never in the picture much and he had already landed himself a spot in jail. Lex seemed to be on that path as well. Lillian was supportive of everything he did and that’s when she started realizing that I wasn’t one of them. She was waiting for the one thing that would prove true all her inklings about me from the beginning. What they had tried to ingrain in me was not as deep-set as it was in them because it had always bothered me. I didn’t fully understand what they wanted from me. I won’t say it didn’t affect me. I have prejudices” - she poked Kara’s arm - “you’ve seen that. But I’ve tried to break out of them and change my thinking. Thinking like and agreeing with them was about survival. I don’t need them anymore. I can think for myself. Sometimes I just don’t know if it’s enough.”

Kara framed Lena’s face with her hand and kissed her forehead. “You don’t give yourself enough credit. Everything you have done, even if I’ve disagreed has always been with the best intentions. For instance, the alien detection device-“

“We don’t have to talk about that.”

“No, Lena, it’s okay. All you wanted was a way for people to feel safe. I understand that. That’s all you’ve been trying to do with L-Corp. Oh –Ra-geez, Lena, you saved all the aliens in the city. If that’s the prejudice you were talking about, I’m not sure you have any of that. You’ve fought against what they tried to teach you. You don’t believe in it like they do.”

“Everyone else believes in what a Luthor is. You're the first person to believe in me.”

Kara shook her head. “I would have no reason _not_ to. You’re just Lena. Thank you for telling me.”

“I gushed a bit.” It was the most Lena had ever said at one time let alone about her family. “Is that how rambling feels?”

“Rambling is a lot more stuttering and confusion,” Kara disagreed. She kissed Lena’s forehead again. “I’m really glad you told me.”

Lena stepped out from the bubble they had created. “You know. The salad is really fine. We don’t need to get anything else.”

Kara was visibly scandalized. “Salad isn’t a meal! That’s a…I don’t even know what that is.”

“For you, it’s a snack,” Lena teased.

Kara wrinkled her nose. “Hey! I love food, alright?”

Lena chuckled. “Just make the phone call.”

 

That was where their relationship was. It had settled into a nice pattern that Kara felt comfortable with. She wasn’t thinking about anything in the future yet or the next step they could take. Lena was. Lena made little comments all the time but Kara ignored them and Lena never pushed. Kara was nervous about that part of their relationship and wasn’t sure she could handle it yet. Just kissing Lena took all of her self-control. It was enough to send her senses into overdrive. There was already enough for her to look out for and the intensity of everything just made it more difficult.

It got harder to keep the secret from the world much to the chagrin of J’onn and Alex. Kara had continued to be photographed and eventually named.

It got harder and harder to keep the secret from Lena. She had to make up excuses for where she had been, where she had to go, why she was leaving in the middle of a sentence. Lena was always kind about it but it could only go on for so long before they hit an iceberg.

Lillian was still missing and no one had heard or seen anything from Cadmus since Kara had rescued Lena from the kryptonite explosion. There was a lull in alien criminal activity but Kara was still out and about every day working with the NCPD and the NCFD, saving lives. She found herself often passing by L-Corp, checking on the company and her girlfriend through the windows. Lena was usually sitting behind her desk. Whenever she wasn’t, Kara texted her to see how she was doing. She knew she shouldn’t be checking up on her so much, especially when Lena didn’t know she was being spied on but Kara couldn’t get rid of the nagging feeling that something was going on behind the scenes and she never knew when it would strike.

The articles she was writing for Snapper weren’t of any importance. It was like the entire city had lost anything of interest to talk about. He was also done with Lena Luthor for the time being. But Kara was dating Lena now and she didn’t need the guise of work to see her girlfriend. And they were girlfriends. She had asked Lena after Alex questioned her about it. Lena stared at her. “Well, I thought so.”

Kara hadn’t officially told anyone else but Alex, Maggie and Kal. J’onn knew already of course though he hadn’t actually said anything yet. They had all seen the photos, Winn had been the one to bring it to her attention. But it had never been said, between any of them, where Kara’s relationship with Lena actually stood. She worried about James, not that he would be mad she was dating anyone but because she worried it would put even a greater strain on their relationship. He was off being Guardian as much as she was off being Supergirl. They didn’t see each other often. Winn, of course, was oblivious and way too wrapped up in his new girlfriend, Lyra. But she wanted them to know Lena, know the Lena that Kara knew, not the one they thought they knew.

 **Sent (12:13pm)** _How do you feel about meeting my friends?_

 **Lena (1:30pm)** _I feel like it’s going to happen at some point_

**Sent (1:31pm)** _Ugh, you know what I mean_

**Lena (1:31pm)** _Do you want me to meet your friends, Kara?_

**Sent (1:32pm)** _Duuuuh, that’s why I’m asking you_

**Lena (1:33pm)** _Then I would love to meet your friends_

**Sent (1:36pm)** _How does tomorrow night sound?_

**Lena (1:36pm)** _That is fine_

Kara stared at the last message not certain if Lena actually thought it was fine or if she was just going along with it because Kara wanted to introduce her to everyone.

“How did I know you were gonna call me?”

“I just don’t know if you’re being serious or not. Are you sure it’s okay?”

“Kara, we’re dating. I’ll have to meet your friends at some point.”

“Well, I know that, but you don’t have to do it now if you’re not ready.”

“It’s not me I’m worried about.”

Kara growled under her breath at the thought. “They’ll be on their best behavior.”

“They already have a bad impression of me. And I get it, my reputation as a Luthor precedes me. I don’t want that to affect your relationship with them. They’re your friends. You shouldn’t have to choose.”

“Exactly,” Kara replied. “And I’m not. They are.”

“You can’t put that on your friends.”

“Lena, I don’t know your middle name yet, Luthor, you are my friend too.”

There was silence.

"Okay, well now you’re never learning my middle name.”

“Can you just please tell me how you really feel? Yes or no,” Kara pleaded.

“I will meet them and I do want to meet them if you promise me that I’m not going to be subjected to interrogation all night.”

“I would never let that happen,” Kara promised. “And besides, my sister and her girlfriend already know so they can be buffers if necessary.”

“Let’s just say I didn’t think I would ever be hanging out with the cop who arrested me,” admitted Lena.

Kara grimaced. “She kinda said the same thing. But I think it’s gonna be great.”

“I’m sure it will be,” Lena said though she didn’t sound so sure and going off everything she had said before, she was very hesitant. “Am I going to see you tonight though?”

“Sure!” Kara answered. “I’ll bring over some food.”

“I wouldn’t have expected anything less. See you later then.”

“Bye, Lena!”

When she hung up with Lena, she opened the “Superfriends” group message on her phone for the first time in months. Everyone had made fun of Winn for the name but she actually really liked it.

 **Sent (1:49pm)** _I’m dating Lena Luthor. You are all being introduced. Tomorrow night, no excuses. We are hanging out. My place. And if any of you say anything rude, the hole you make in the ground will break world records_

That was all she was going to say. She would let them do the rest.

**Winn (1:51pm)** _WHHHHAAATTT!!!?????_

**James (1:51pm)** _I feel like I should’ve guessed this_

**Winn (1:51pm)** _Since when?????_

**Winn (1:51pm)** _Lena Luthor???_

**Winn (1:51pm)** _Kara you told me you weren’t gay_

**Winn (1:51pm)** _Did you lie to me and tell me you were Supergirl so I wouldn’t ask more questions???_

**J’onn (1:51pm)** _I have duties at the DEO that need to be attended to_

**Maggie (1:51pm)** _Little Danvers, feisty_

**Winn (1:52pm)** _Did anyone else know? I feel like I did with Alex all over again_

**Alex (1:52pm)** _J’onn, you better be there_

**Maggie (1:53pm)** _Winn you’ve been connected to Lyra by the lips, I’m not surprised_

**James (1:54pm)** _I didn’t know either, Winn_

**Alex (1:54pm)** _Everyone settle down. She only told Maggie and I_

**Alex (1:54pm)** _Also Winn, she’s not gay. She didn’t lie. This isn’t about you_

**Winn (1:55pm)** _Okay, ouch. No need to beat me with the truth_

**Alex (1:55pm)** _Do I need to come over there again?_

**Winn (1:55pm)** _NO YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENED THE LAST TIME_

**Maggie (1:56pm)** _You pissed your pants?_

**Winn (1:56pm)** _No! Oh my god, no, of course not_

**Alex (1:57pm)** _He spilled some secrets_

**J’onn (1:59pm)** _Fine. I will be there. Can my agents please get back to work._


	9. Chapter 9

Kara was adjusting the bowls and plates on the counter when Lena came up behind her and took hold of her hand. Kara turned around smiling. “Everything is perfect, Kara.”

“I was just checking.” She wanted everything to be perfect. She wanted Lena to feel comfortable. She wanted her friends to be nice. She wanted everyone to get along.

Lena intertwined their hands. “You’ve been checking for half an hour. They’ll be here soon.”

Even though they had been dating for a little over a month, Kara rarely saw Lena out of her work clothes and it was always off-putting. She loved it. Lena looked great in anything. She was wearing dark jeans and an MIT t-shirt. That’s what Kara grabbed onto to pull her in for a kiss. Lena’s hands grabbed for the counter. They were both smiling, making it difficult to actually kiss each other. Anytime she was kissing Lena, all of her senses were overloaded, even the super ones. If they hadn’t been, Kara would have heard the footsteps outside of her apartment. “Aw yeah, get it, Little Danvers.”

Lena stepped back fluidly while Kara spun around, almost knocking a plate off the counter. Alex had her eyes shut and Maggie nudged her. “They’re done.”

Maggie reached out her hand first to Lena. “I can’t really apologize for doing my job but well…yeah, you get it.”

That was all she said before unceremoniously falling onto the couch and clicking on the TV. Maggie had never been over to her apartment but it sure didn’t take her much time to make herself at home. Alex took a little more time. “Nice to see you again, Lena.”

“The same to you. It’ll be nice to finally get to know the woman that Kara talks about all the time.”

Maggie was still listening because she yelled over her shoulder, “Get used to it, Luthor. I almost know more about Kara than I do Alex.”

Kara felt Lena tense when Maggie called her “Luthor” and she could see that Alex had noticed the change in demeanor. Maggie hadn’t meant anything by it, she called most people by their last name. Kara also knew that when people said “Luthor,” they usually said it with spite. Kara rubbed Lena’s arm, trying to soothe her and it seemed to work. Alex smiled sympathetically. “She can be…abrasive.”

Lena nodded with a half-smile. Alex walked away and said under her breath so only Kara could hear her, “I’ll talk to Maggie about it."           

Lena turned fully to Kara. “I am definitely not used to that.”

“Ms. Luthor doesn’t bother you?” Kara questioned knowing that she had playfully used that to reference Lena many times. Not to mention everyone at L-Corp calls her that.

“In the business world, that’s how it works. I’ve become very used to hearing that.” She whispered in Kara’s ear, “And I never mind when you call me that.” 

Kara felt the heat rise into her face and she had to look away from Lena. There was a knock at the door, saving Kara from responding, and she opened to reveal Winn, without Lyra, and James. Apparently, they were all coming in twos. Lena had followed her and was standing near, waiting for introductions. Kara gestured between them but Lena spoke, “Hey. You’re the guy who helped me with the –”

“Black body field generator. Yup, that was me.” Lena shook his hand.

“Okay, Lena this is Winn. Winn this is Lena.”

“Now I feel weird about…” He wiggled a finger between Lena and Kara. “Was this happening then? Because I said – and now that’s just wrong.”

Lena looked to Kara, giving her the power to choose what to tell them. “Um, not this exactly.”        

“No one would’ve believed you and Ms. Luthor anyway, Winn,” James piped in, holding out his hand. “I’m James Olsen.”    

“I know,” Lena responded. “You’re a pretty famous man, Mr. Olsen.”

Winn made an “ew gross” face at them both. “You guys aren’t going to be referring to each other like that all night, are you?”

Lena’s laugh was light and tinkly; the one she had when she had no responsibilities, when she could be Lena the woman instead of Lena the CEO. Both James and Winn were not prepared and Kara joined in the laughter, laughing at their expressions. “Of course not, James.”

“Lena,” he nodded back.

The door was still opened and J’onn appeared. “Oh and Lena this is –“

“Hank Henshaw.” J’onn reached out. Kara saw something flash across Lena’s face but she quickly shook it and smiled.

Kara closed the door behind them. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” she brushed off the question.

Kara was a little concerned but let it go. She clapped to get everyone’s attention. “Everyone’s here now so dig in, guys!”

There was a hustle to get to the food. Kara watched Maggie hurdle the couch to tackle Winn so she could get there first. J’onn stood back and watched everyone before he took his own turn.

“There’s soooo much food,” Winn acted like he was complaining.

“Yeah,” Lena said, “is anybody else frankly horrified by the amount of food that Kara consumes?”

There seemed to be an unspoken decision made between all of Kara’s friends and Alex shrugged. “Well, she’s still alive so it hasn’t killed her yet.”

Kara stuck her tongue out at Alex and put another two pieces of pizza onto the already enormous pile on her plate, just out of spite. She skipped to the couch and fell onto it, throwing her feet into the air and sinking into the cushion. She groaned loudly at the first bite. “It’s so good.”    

She had her eyes closed but the couch dipped and there was Lena, sitting very close to her and then there was Winn on the other side of Lena. Maggie and Alex had taken up the opposite couch and James took the chair. J’onn was still in the kitchen. “Wouldn’t it have been easier to eat at the table?”

“Come on Hank! This is more fun!” But instead of taking the other seat on the couch, he pulled up a chair from the kitchen. They were all crowded into the small living room.

Winn set his plate down, his mouth full of pizza. “What we doin’?”

A pillow flew across the room and hit him in the face. “Don’t talk with your mouth full, idiot.”

Maggie and Winn had quickly built up an almost little brother, older sister relationship. It had come out of nowhere to the irritation of everyone else. Alex sat up straighter. “I think we should all get to know Lena a little better."

Kara glowered at her and Alex rolled her eyes. “I’m not interrogating her, Kara. But none of us know anything about her.”

“I’m not very interesting.” Lena leaned more into Kara who disagreed greatly but she knew Lena was not keen on talking about herself.

Winn scoffed. James pointed at her with his plate. “You’re a twenty-four-year-old CEO. That’s pretty interesting.”

“Well, when your family owns the business, nepotism is sort of the rule of thumb.”

Kara nudged her. “But it’s yours now.”

“That’s true. But I only got there because of Lex and my mother. Hopefully, though, the rebranding will afford me a little more credit. We are working on some new tech right now…”

After that Winn took all of Lena’s attention. Kara just watched. Lena seemed much more open and comfortable talking about something she not only knew well but was interested in. Winn was equal with her on that front. Eventually, James had dragged Maggie, J’onn, and Alex into a game of gin rummy. Kara had opened a bottle of wine for everyone and then gone into the kitchen to clean up.

Alex found her, pulling out a bottle of whiskey. “We like the hard stuff.”

Kara wrinkled her nose. Alcohol had always smelled so strong, which was one of the reasons she stayed away from it. She only had it in her apartment for surprise visits and parties like this. James had brought a case of beer as well and he and J’onn were splitting that. Winn was reaching for one too until Lena shoved a glass of wine in his face. “You have to at least try it. But, I know you’ll like it anyway.”

Alex leaned against the counter while Kara packed up the extra food. “She’s a lot easier to get along with than I expected.”

Kara was focused, not looking at her sister. “That’s because you’ve only ever interacted with her in a professional manner. You’re different in and out of uniform.”

Alex raised an eyebrow. “Barely.”

“But you are,” Kara insisted.

“And you really like her?”

Kara finally looked at her sister. She knew Alex was only being protective but it was tiresome. “Yes. I thought that was obvious.”

“You guys are constantly watching each other? Did you know that?”

“Pfft” - Kara let out a breath of air - “she does not watch me.”

“Uh, yeah, she does. And she’s really good at not getting caught but she just watches you,” Alex explained. “And it's not in a creepy, staring way. It's like she’s listening to you even if you aren’t talking or doing anything. It's like she’s trying to figure out how you react to things and it’s so subtle that I barely caught it.”

“But you did.”

“But I did.”

Kara didn’t realize that Lena had been doing that when she had been doing the exact same to Lena. She found herself watching the woman constantly. When she was talking, Kara always watched because she was interesting. She could be so expressive when she wanted to be and when she let down her walls. But Kara saw the way she would tuck her hair behind her ear or twirl it in her fingers when talking. There was a pattern to which leg she crossed. The way her tongue stuck out of her mouth a little bit when she smiled in a certain way. Little nuances that were habit to Lena and beautiful to Kara. “And do you like her?”

“Is that really the point?” Alex questioned, pouring a couple glasses.

Kara snapped the lid of a container shut. “I want my sister to like my girlfriend.”

“But if I didn’t, would you still date her?”

Kara thought about it for a little while. She thought of how far they had come and how much richer her days had been when she had Lena in them. Of how she wouldn’t be where she was at CatCo if it wasn’t for Lena giving her that little nudge toward reporting. Cat might have stepped in but Kara wasn’t sure. It might’ve been all part of Cat’s lesson for her to fail if she couldn’t make up her mind. She thought about how anything happening to Lena made her sick and how just seeing her in the room made her smile. That answer was easy. “Yeah.”

“Then it doesn’t matter.”           

“But it matters to me,” Kara pleaded with her sister. “Even if you don’t. Just tell me. I need to know what you’re thinking. I didn’t like Maggie in the beginning because of what she did but then I saw how happy you were and are with her and I came around. I’m not going to be mad at how you feel I just want to know.”

“I don’t know, Kara,” Alex said honestly but with a look like she didn’t totally believe Kara wouldn’t be upset. “I don’t have an opinion yet. I tried to erase any prior thoughts of her I had, to give her a fresh start because of this but I don’t know enough about her to know if I like her or not. And besides, I’m going to be skeptical of anyone who’s involved with my little sister.”

Alex squeezed her into a side hug and Kara tried to be happy that Alex was not wholly giving up on her. “I’m gonna try, Kara. I promise. If she makes you happy and treats you right that’s all I want for you.”

“Danvers, you’ve been gone for a year getting those drinks!” Maggie shouted, engrossed in the game of war her and James had switched to when Alex got up.

Alex smirked. “I’ve got my own lady to please.”

Kara hip checked her away and started trying to stuff all the leftovers into the fridge. The fridge was definitely not big enough. “Here, let me help with that.”

Lena bent down with her, reorganizing the fridge as she worked, working the Tupperware in like she was playing Tetris. Kara stood up, hands on her hips, watching. “Okay, well that was impressive.”

Lena took in her stance and laughed. “You’ve been hanging out with Supergirl too much.”

Kara laughed it off and started playing with her fingers. Lena touched her elbow. “Hey, are you okay?”

“Are you okay?” Kara avoided the question. Lena looked over at the table. Winn and J’onn had moved so now everyone was crowded around the vicious game of war. “They’ve been very nice. I like Winn. He’s a total geek. He’d fit in right away at L-Corp.”

Kara hadn’t expected that declaration and she didn’t want to give up her friend, not that she thought he would ever want to leave. “Oh, um, I think he really likes his job.”

“Underappreciated tech support at CatCo? I’m sure,” sarcasm laced her voice. “He isn’t being used correctly there.” 

“Okay,” Kara yielded. “But don’t come to me when he turns down the proposal.”

 

A whole case of beer, another bottle of wine, and half the bottle of whiskey later, J’onn was carrying Winn out the door. “You did a job on this one, Ms. Luthor.”

James followed after, waving as the door shut. Maggie and Alex were in the corner whispering about something and Kara cleared her throat. Alex looked up with wide eyes like a child caught breaking the rules. Kara tried not to listen to conversations but sometimes she couldn’t help it. Certain words would jump out at her and she had definitely heard Maggie say, “I bet you ten bucks Lena spends the night.”

Alex motioned to the door. “So, we’ll just be leaving.”

She was trying to drag Maggie out with her but Maggie had another course of action. She poked Lena’s shoulder. “You’re not so bad, Luthor" - she smirked -“Have fun you two!”

Lena took the comment with grace as she always did while Kara stuttered out unintelligible mumbles. Alex grabbed Maggie by the shoulders, turning her around. “Okaaaay, time to go!”

The door shut and Kara relaxed into the door, smiling. “Well, that was a night.”

“It was,” Lena agreed, reaching out for Kara to take her hands. She walked them backward to the couch and fell onto it, Lena cuddling into Kara’s side. Kara’s phone buzzed and she pulled it out.

 **James (12:15am)** _Watch out, Kara. I think Winn has a crush on your girlfriend_

She showed the phone to Lena. “They’re gonna talk about you. Wanna watch?”

She said, “Of course,” but didn’t seem too focused on the phone. She was nuzzling Kara with her nose. It tickled and Kara laughed. “Lena, are you drunk?”

Lena pulled back, looking offended. “I am not drunk. But pretending to be entirely sober for the last couple hours was exhausting.”

Kara pulled her back in. “Aw, you didn’t have to pretend. No one would have noticed.”

“I was not going to ruin a good first impression,” Lena replied. Kara’s phone buzzed again.

 **Winn (12:18am)** _i. donot. I thiiink shes coul_

 **Maggie (12:18am)** _Guys, they’re probably busy (; I doubt they’ll answer_

 **Maggie (12:19am)** _This is Alex. Sorry. I took her phone away immediately_

Lena was not interested in the conversation at all. She had been leaving kisses on Kara’s shoulder, then her cheek and was currently nipping playfully at her ear. She whispered, “Should I leave?”

Kara knew what she meant. Lena had been hinting at it for a while but Kara always shut it down immediately. Every time she kissed Lena, she worried she was going to break her nose or her hand or bruise her somehow, going any further was completely out of the question. And not only that, but she was keeping a huge secret from Lena and being with her that intimately felt wrong because it would be overshadowed by a lie.

Keeping the secret of Supergirl was usually extremely easy because the people she was keeping it from didn’t need to know whom she was. They needed to know Supergirl was going to be there to help them. She wasn’t forced to keep the secret from anyone she was close to. Alex, Winn, James, Eliza, even Lucy knew. Cat was another thing altogether. Tricking Cat was a necessity to continue working at CatCo and even if the woman was unaware, she had helped both Kara and Supergirl in ways that she would never know.

But not telling Lena was a way to keep her safe, especially when she was so wrapped up in the force that Supergirl was fighting. But not telling her was also a black spot on their relationship and what it could become. Kara didn’t want to keep the secret from her; it made her guilty every day when she had to lie about where she was or what she was doing. When Lena asked her about her day and she had to pick and choose what parts she told her about. And the guilt gnawed at her whenever Lena looked at her because she knew Lena thought she was seeing the whole Kara when she was only seeing a part. Kara couldn’t ask Lena to be so open and vulnerable with her when she was holding back.

“Of course not!” Kara said, extracting herself from Lena and jumping off the couch. “It’s late. You can have the bed and I’ll take the couch.”

Lena’s face clearly showed that was not what she had meant but Kara pretended to be unaware. Despite the countless hours they had spent at each other’s places and the late nights, they hadn’t stayed over with each other yet. “Come here, I’m sure I have a pair of pants you can wear to sleep in.”

Kara didn’t wait for her to respond or follow but disappeared into her room, pulling out sweatpants that would all be a couple inches too long for Lena. When she turned around though, Lena was already pulling off her jeans and climbing into Kara’s bed. “You don’t have to sleep on the couch you know. We can just sleep if that’s what you’re worried about.”

Kara waved her off, not meeting her eyes. “I’ve slept there before. It’s pretty comfy.”

She placed the pants on the bed. “In case you get cold.”

“Kara.” She was looking for her own pajamas, which she pulled out of a drawer, ignoring Lena. “Kara.”

“Yeah?”

“Kara, get over here.” Lena patted the bed next to her. Kara went over but didn’t sit down. Lena’s finger motioned for her to lean over and she placed a simple kiss on Kara’s lips. “I just wanted to say goodnight.”

Kara smiled warmly. “Goodnight, Lena. Sleep tight.”


	10. Chapter 10

 "Cadmus," Supergirl growled, bending the desk under her fingertips.

 

"Snapper," Kara growled, crushing her hands into fists.

 

Not only had Cadmus stolen the alien registry but Kara's article to warn the alien population of National City had been thrown out by Snapper for lack of sources. She was the source; she had all the information. But of course, she couldn't reveal that to Snapper and he was starting to be displeased with Supergirl as her every source. Her head was down as she bee-lined from his office, furious, and she bumped into something. "Excuse me."

The woman turned around. Kara stepped back, surprised she hadn't recognized the jacket, but her mind was elsewhere. "Lena?"

"She said with surprise in her voice for some reason," Lena greeted.

“Oh,” Kara whined, “we were supposed to go try that new fermentation place. I totally forgot. I’m so sorry. There’s a lot going on.”

Lena shook her head and joked, “It’s okay, kombucha can wait. Maybe we can do it tonight.”

“Are you alright?” she added suddenly, finally comprehending the look on Kara's face.

Kara’s shoulders fell. “No, Snapper refused to publish my article on Cadmus.”

“Aw, darling,” Lena said. The endearment was not lost on Kara but when it usually would have made her heated with affection, she was too bummed out to take it into consideration. Lena was obviously unsure of whether Kara was comfortable with physical affection in her workplace. Kara initiated the hug, Lena wrapping her arms around her. “I know that article would’ve helped a lot of people. What can I do?”

“Nothing,” Kara pouted, straightening up. The people in the office were looking at them. It wasn’t every day that Lena Luthor showed up at CatCo.

Lena held onto Kara’s biceps, an expression flashing across her face that Kara hadn’t been able to find a name for. It happened whenever Lena held onto her like this but the woman had never made any further comment. She erased the look and smiled. “Well, I might be able to help.”

“Really?”

“Not with that article per say. But mother was on the board. I’m sure there is something hidden away in L-Corp that could stop them. Maybe you can publish that and share it with…”

She trailed off. She had been doing that a lot lately whenever she was going to mention Supergirl.

“No, that could help. It could be my second source!” Kara exclaimed. “Thank you, thank you, thank you.”

Lena laughed quietly. “Well, I better go get on that. Maybe we can do that place for dinner?”

“Of course,” Kara leaned in and left a peck on Lena’s cheek.

  

 **Lena (6:08pm)** _I’m sorry, can we reschedule again?_

 **Sent (6:08pm)** _Could I really say no when I totally forgot about it today?_

 **Lena (6:09pm)** _Thank you, Kara_

 **Sent (6:09pm)** _I’ll be waiting here for you_

 **Lena (6:09pm)** _You don’t have to do that, I think it’ll be easier if I just go home tonight. I might be here for a while._

 **Sent (6:10pm)** _:(_

 **Lena (6:10pm)** _You know that’s just the text version of your puppy face. It’s not fair._

Kara sent her a picture of her actual puppy face.

 **Lena (6:11pm)** _You are cruel, Miss Danvers_

 **Sent (6:11pm)** _Does that mean I’ll get to see you later!?_

 **Lena (6:12pm)** _I’ll let you know in a little bit_

Not soon after that, Kara was on the phone with Lena. “I found something that might be able to help.”

Before Kara could respond there was the sound of surging electricity and a man’s groan. Sounds of a struggle alerted her that something was wrong. “Lena? Lena?”

The only thing she could hear over the rustling was Lena trying to fight against whatever was happening. But then the voices began to fade. Kara dropped the phone and within seconds had donned the suit and was halfway to L-Corp. As she neared there were three figures wrestling on Lena’s balcony and Kara could only watch as her fear came to life and Lena was shoved over the edge. 

Supergirl’s entire body roared with rage and she dove, swooping to catch Lena in her arms. The woman looked dazed, her scream stuck in her throat upon impact with Supergirl. Her arms were wrapped around Supergirl’s neck. “Supergirl?”

It was so quiet. Supergirl wasn’t surprised when Lena tucked her head into her neck; she hated flying of any kind. Supergirl refrained from kissing her forehead and settled for squeezing Lena tighter. “I’ve got you."

She rose up and as they neared the balcony, Lena became a little more courageous. She looked at the men with a face of defiance. It was powerful and easily sent a message. Supergirl couldn’t help the snark-filled smile she had on her face, despite the situation. “Drop something?”

The two men couldn’t have been more surprised by the turn of events and they definitely didn’t expect a blast of freeze breathe to knock them off their feet. She touched down gently, careful of the impact on Lena and set the woman upright. “How did you know?”

Supergirl thought fast, thinking something up on the spot. “Uh, I was getting coffee with Kara Danvers when you called.”

“Ah, that’s lucky!” Lena said, incredulity written all over her face. “She didn’t mention anything to me.”

“Oh well, I’m sure it was only because it was last minute.” Kara really needed to stop throwing her alter egos under the bus. But this time, Lena didn’t seem bothered. She looked enthralled. “Are you alright, Ms. Luthor?”

Lena smiled. “I think you and Kara have been hanging out too much. She’s rubbing off on you too.”

Kara really wasn’t sure where this conversation was heading so she stayed quiet, returning Lena’s smile. Lena seemed to be standing a lot closer to Supergirl than usual but Kara wasn’t sure if it was real or if her boundaries had changed. “You saved my life. Again.”

The look on Lena’s face was full of adoration, the way she normally looked at Kara and that was when Supergirl feared she had figured it out. “Just doing my job, Ms. Luthor.”

“I see you retrieved your cape.”

Supergirl dipped her head. “That was a while ago.”

“I haven’t seen much of you since. Thank you for that night as well though I was surprised to find myself in my own apartment. I’m sure you won’t tell me how you knew where I lived.”

“Classified,” Supergirl teased and Lena smiled.

“It was much appreciated.”

Lena came out of the trance she seemed to be in, stepping back and clearing her throat. Whatever easy-going, joking air that they had been wrapped in broke. Supergirl put her fists on her hips and nodded toward the two unconscious men. “I’ll get that cleared up for you.”

She landed on the sidewalk and could feel Lena looking down on her from the balcony above. She was probably a tiny spec in the woman’s eyes. “Alex? Can we get some agents to L-Corp?”

“On it. What happened?”

Kara looked up, pinpointing Lena against the night sky. “I think it was an assassination attempt.”

“You’ll have to come in. J’onn will want to debrief.”

“Not tonight, Alex.” She didn’t wait for a response because she didn’t want to argue about it. Not a second later, her phone buzzed.

She saw it was Lena. “Oh my god, Lena. What’s going on?”

It sounded completely faked. Kara felt nauseous. “I’m alright. Everything’s okay. Thank you. It was lucky you decided to see Supergirl tonight. She saved my life.”

“What?”

“I think my mother tried to have me killed because of what I was looking into.”

The response solidified exactly what Supergirl had inferred. “I’m coming right now.”

“No,” Lena said quickly, “No, there’s going to be a scene. I’ll have to make a statement. I will come over after everything’s done here, okay?”

“Well, if you’re sure,” Kara conceded. She was a little hurt that Lena didn’t want her but then again, it gave her more time to help the DEO agents that were running into the building.

Once the building had been cleared as safe, Lena exited the elevators. Supergirl was talking with an agent but turned to her. “Stay safe, Ms. Luthor.”

All Supergirl received in return was a curt nod before Lena disappeared and her car drove off. It was a massive change from their altercation on the balcony and left Supergirl frowning.

 

Throughout the next few weeks, the DEO and Supergirl kept close tabs on Lena. Though Kara’s relationship with Lena grew and moved as it always had, whenever Supergirl was with Lena, the room was filled with tension. Lena was polite but short and barely stayed in the same room as Supergirl for more than a couple minutes. She wouldn’t sustain eye contact. It was frustrating for not only Supergirl but Kara because she had no idea what was going on with Lena. She saw Lena acting one way and then she came to Kara and acted like everything was normal. But how could she bring it up? Supergirl would never ask Kara to see if Lena was mad at her, that just wasn’t a Supergirl thing, that was a Kara thing. Supergirl did her job as always, no matter what someone’s ideas about her were. If they needed to be saved or helped, she did so without batting an eyelash.

The brief reprieve from Cadmus didn’t last long and their retaliation against Lena sent Supergirl into a frenzy to put a stop to them. She took every opportunity to try and track down each and every lead the DEO came upon. None of them ever gave her the result they wanted. Cadmus always seemed one step ahead. Buildings were cleared out, no traces left to prove they had been there.

She flew into the DEO, stumbling upon her landing. She had been at it for hours, flying back and forth across the city, threatening too many people, having her hopes dashed too many times. Alex rushed forward to steady her. “What happened out there, Supergirl?”

“Nothing.”

“You always stick the landing,” Alex teased.

“I’m just exhausted. I feel like I’m failing. There’s never anything to grab hold of when it comes to Cadmus.”

“You’ll get ‘em,” Alex promised.

Supergirl knew she was trying but she didn’t have the energy to hope. “Will I?”

“Supergirl!” J’onn commanded, strolling into the command room. “Go home. Take a rest.”

J’onn was always telling her to take it easy, that they needed her in tip-top shape for when they found something solid. And ignoring his order to go home had never gotten her anywhere. She knew she would push herself to the breaking point if she had to. Cadmus had the alien registry. They knew exactly whom they were going after and Supergirl was in no position to help. The alien disappearances had not gone unnoticed by the DEO. That was what Kara had been searching for. Cadmus had to be holding them somewhere.

Supergirl stormed out, not mad at J’onn but mad at the situation. She slammed her fist into the wall. She instantly halted. The hole was a reminder of her red kryptonite self. Alex came bolting around the corner after her with the noise of crunching concrete. Alex looked between the fist-sized hole and her sister. Supergirl was just staring at it. This was the type of damage she could do. She always was able to prove that, but she failed at what was most important.

She could feel Alex watching her. “I shouldn’t have done that.”

Her cape flourished behind her as she thundered out of the DEO.

Kara had left a key one day with a note that read: “I wanted you to have this. My home is your home.”

Lena wasn’t there. She hadn’t really expected her to be but she wanted her to be. The key had disappeared from where Kara left it so she figured Lena had decided to accept the offer. She hadn’t used it yet; she still always knocked. Kara collapsed onto the couch. She should sleep, she really should but she wanted to wait up for Lena.

 

“Kara?” She must have dozed off because the voice sounded like it was coming through water. She mumbled from her spot on the couch. She picked her head up, noticing the dark wet spot on the pillow. She quickly wiped at her mouth. She wasn’t really at the point where she wanted to be drooling in front of her girlfriend.

The apartment was dark save for the light above the stove and the lamp on the table next to her. Lena was a dark silhouette near the door. Kara motioned sleepily. “C’mere.”

“Kara, I have to tell you something.” Lena’s tone woke Kara and she sat straight up on the couch.

“What’s wrong?”

Lena stopped near the lamp; it cast haunting shadows across her face. She was still dressed for work; she hadn’t even taken off her jacket.

“I came across a name in some of the old Luthor Corp files” - she pulled a folder from her jacket - “I had it printed off.”

“Why are you telling me?” Kara asked, her mind still slow to work.

Lena’s face was full of sympathy. “Kara, it was Jeremiah Danvers.”

The little bit of the light that was left in the apartment seeped out and Kara’s only thought was of Alex. She jumped off the couch and past Lena. “I have to go.”

“I know.”

As soon as she was out of sight, she took off, flying to Alex’s with no care that she hadn’t even donned the suit. She hovered near the balcony door and pounded on the glass door so hard a crack emerged. Alex, all bleary-eyed, came padding over and confusedly unlocked it so Kara could come in. A bright light clicked on by Alex’s bed and Kara could see a mess of hair sit up. “Alex? Kara?”

If she wasn’t so preoccupied, Kara would have been embarrassed at the turn of events but it wasn’t like she hadn’t shown up unannounced before.  She grabbed hold of Alex, shaking her so she became more focused. “I’m sorry but it’s Jeremiah.”

Alex about ripped the folder from Kara’s grip. Her mouth opened and Kara heard a whisper of “oh my god” before she reached out and caught Alex as she collapsed to the floor.

Maggie had run over but was not sure what to do as Kara was already cradling Alex. She picked up the papers that had skidded across the floor. Kara didn’t care at the moment that Maggie reading the papers even though it was probably a breach of protocol.

“Shit,” was Maggie’s reaction. They waited for Alex to be devoid of tears and when she was, she pulled on her usual DEO garb and said, “Let’s go,” with no sense of emotion.

Maggie stopped Kara at the door. “Take care of her.”

“I always do,” Kara nodded.

Maggie shook her head. “It’s usually the other way around.”

Kara shot her an indignant look but didn’t say another word. Maggie wasn’t completely off base. Alex’s entire life had been geared toward protecting and taking care of her younger sister. Kara had always been there whenever Alex needed her support but Alex was usually trying to be too strong, hiding what was hurting her.

Kara did need to step up and take control. Jeremiah meant so much to her but he was Alex’s father. Kara knew the pain of losing parents. Alex did as well until this moment. Now, everything could change and maybe she’d have a second chance.

“What’s this? I thought I told you to rest,” J’onn said. Kara figured he slept at the DEO most days. Alex was in no way to talk. “It’s Jeremiah, J’onn. We think he’s still alive.”

J’onn made a miscalculation. He said Jeremiah had chosen Cadmus. He said they couldn’t waste resources on a rescue mission for a man who was guilty and working against them. As far as Kara knew, J’onn could be right. That wasn’t his mistake. His error was thinking that either one of them, Alex or Kara, would listen to him.

 

Kara walked in without asking. Alex was in her face within seconds. “Did you know he going to do that? Did you know it was just a trick? It was cruel.”

Maggie was sitting in the background on the couch, choosing for the best, not interrupt them. Kara had no idea what Alex was going on about. Alex pointed at her accusingly. “Did you know J’onn was going to trick me to get me off the case?”

“Alex, what are you talking about?” Kara reached out to her sister who backed away. Tears were escaping and running down Alex’s face even with how hard she was attempting to hold them back

“He showed up here. As dad! I thought I was seeing dad for the first time since I was fourteen” - her voice was cracking but she powered through - “And so what was I to say besides of course I’ll help him? And then he vanished and J’onn was standing right there.”

Alex pointed to a spot on the floor right next to Kara. “He looked like he felt sorry for me while putting me on leave.”

Alex growled, “I am not going to sit here when dad is out there! I am finding him. I don’t care what it takes.”

No one knew what to say. J’onn had no right to put Alex through that, to make her think Jeremiah found her. She felt as betrayed as when J’onn had been lying to them about being Hank Henshaw. Alex put her hand on her forehead, partially covering her eyes. She threw the same hand out to the side, opening herself up to both Kara and Maggie. “I suppose you both agree with him.”

Maggie stood up. “Actually, I don’t.”

“What?” Alex’s chest stopped heaving immediately. “You want to find your dad. That’s what you need to do.”

“Then you’ll help me?” Alex breathed out.

Maggie took her hand. “Ride or die.”

Alex almost laughed until she remembered Kara. Kara had listened to the whole thing. It was selfish when she should be worrying about Jeremiah that Kara thought it was unfair that Alex could be with Maggie, entirely, all the time. She wasn’t hiding anything because Maggie knew everything. She hadn’t even spoken to or texted Lena since she had rushed from her apartment. She wondered if Lena had stayed in her apartment that night. She wondered if Lena was still there. She wondered if Lena would be there when she came back. 

She hadn’t had a second to check her phone calls or messages, working on coms all day and night. James would surely cover for her at CatCo since Snapper was looking for any way to fire her. But looking at Alex’s face again, none of that mattered. “I’m with you. Always."


	11. Chapter 11

Supergirl held down the fort at the DEO, covering for Alex, keeping J’onn from suspicion. But when the time came, and it came fast (Alex and Maggie made one hell of a team), Maggie was absent. “I told her I needed to do this alone.”

“I’m not leaving,” Kara told her.

Alex smiled, it was small and not entirely genuine. “I wasn’t going to ask you to.”

But she might as well have with as much good as it did them. Once they infiltrated the building, the old Luthor Corp building mentioned by Lena and backed up by Jeremiah’s file and the intel Maggie and Alex stole earlier, they were separated. Even though they had them, they weren’t using coms; they didn’t want to risk the DEO tracking them. Supergirl whisked through the building, throwing guards to the side, searching for her sister who had been lost in the melee upon their entering. She had sworn she had heard Alex yell, “Dad!” but the commotion had been loud and disrupted her hearing. The problem was she didn’t know if Alex had chased after him alone or if she had been captured.

The building was a maze that Supergirl couldn’t figure out. Everything looked the same so she couldn’t tell if she was making progress or going in circles but with the amount of time they had been down there, an alert must have been sent to Lillian. Kara’s mind started going to the worst-case scenario: that Alex had been taken captive and she would never find her. But just when she thought all hope was lost, she felt and heard an explosion wrack the building. It took her less than ten seconds to find the source and when she did, she hid in the shadows. 

Alex was facing off against Lillian and there was Jeremiah, standing between the two women as if he was choosing sides. Lillian was working at a computer. “My daughter decided it would be best to share information she should have never gotten her hands on. We’ve been exposed. We’re cutting our losses, launching the ship with the aliens on it. It’s not ideal but there are a few hundred. It’s a start.”

“Turn it off, now,” Alex commanded.

“You don’t threaten me,” Lillian sneered. Supergirl didn’t know if she should intervene or not.

“Lillian, do you really think I would walk into the lion’s den without a whip?”

Kara bristled with pride, thinking Alex was talking about her. Her decision to stay hidden for the time being had paid off. So she wasn’t expecting what Alex said next. “I planted ten particle mines all over this facility. Stop the launch.”

“You’re lying,” Lillian said with certainty. Alex cocked her head. “You bet?” 

Supergirl could see the remote in her hand and within seconds a blast went off. That hadn’t been part of the plan. Alex was shouting, “If I let this go the entire place lights up!”

“The only way to stop that ship is to drop that stick,” Lillian challenged. As soon as she said it, Kara knew she had underestimated Alex’s resolve. Without hesitation, Alex dropped the remote. The place lit up and Kara couldn’t see anything, blinded by the fire and light of the explosions.

When everything died down, the place was empty. Alex was gone. Lillian was gone. Jeremiah was gone.

For a split second she had seen her foster father. And for that split second she hoped that maybe, just maybe, things could get back to how they were before. But that hope had been crushed before it even had a chance to grow.

She didn’t know what to do now; she had to get backup. “J’onn?”

“Supergirl? What are you doing on coms?”

There was no time to ask for forgiveness. “Alex and I infiltrated Cadmus.”

The sound through the earpiece was a roar of frustration.

“They had a ship filled with aliens that they were sending off of Earth. Something about jumping to Takron-Galtos.”

Winn’s voice breached her ear, “Someone has hacked into the DEO sending us the information.”

Alarms sounded through his open com line. “Winn, what’s going on?”

“There’s been a spacecraft launch. Wait, Alex is calling me.”

The phone must have been on speaker because Kara could hear her sister’s voice. “The launch is me. As soon as the ship clears the atmosphere we jump to light speed.”

“I can’t get there in time,” J’onn said. Mon-El came out of nowhere; she shouldn’t have been surprised. Just because she hadn’t been talking with him didn’t mean he no longer worked at the DEO. Most of the time they just stayed out of each other’s way. He hadn’t taken her not returning his feelings very well. But he had learned and he was helpful even if it was just stating the obvious, “It has to be slowed down.”

Supergirl didn’t hesitate for a second and took off. “I’m here.”

The ship was visually picking up speed but when she finally reached it, it started to attack. She didn’t dodge in time and was blasted back by the ship’s firing. A loud ringing in her ear informed her that her com had gone dead. She wouldn’t be getting any more help. She froze the blasters. They broke apart under the strain.

She flew to the front of the ship, latching on and pushing. Alex stumbled in the control booth. They nodded at each other. Their trust was unspoken; Alex always put her faith in Kara.

Supergirl pushed hard and the frigate groaned under her force but it was still speeding up and away from Earth. Alex kept nodding. “Go. It’s up to you now.”

But the effort wasn’t working. Looking into Alex’s eyes, her sister’s eyes, the woman that had always believed in her, she realized she was going to fail. Kara shook her head in fear. The pain and fear left Alex’s face, replaced with desperation and strength. “Come on.”

Alex pressed her palm against the glass, her eyes never leaving Kara’s. Kara placed her own hand on the glass to mirror Alex’s and she nodded. She felt a new strength; Alex wasn’t giving up on her. “You can do this.”

Kara didn’t want to pull her hand away but she needed a better grip on the ship so she did. She brought all the strength she could gather, some she didn’t even know she had, and she pushed. The scream that ripped out of her throat couldn’t be helped. Her cry lasted for an eternity, the metal giving way to her strength.

“You got this!” Alex’s voice was a reminder in her ears. She thought about coming to the Danvers. The first time she took Alex out flying. The millions of times that Alex had comforted her. The fact that there had not been one moment of her life that Alex had been absent from and just the thought that there could be, that she could lose her sister like she lost everything else, drove new energy throughout her body. The ship groaned louder, her scream reaching the point where her throat felt raw. “Come on. Come on!”

The hope and trust and belief that was written on Alex’s face was the last shred of might she required. The ship shuddered, the engine failing. Relief crossed her sister’s face. “Okay. Okay.”

Kara fell against the glass, breathing heavily, wanting a reprieve but she had to get the ship back to the ground. Alex smiled at her and when she smiled back, she almost started sobbing. Alex put her hand back out and Kara mirrored it again. She wanted to wrap her arms around her sister. She could have failed. Alex could have died. The glass between them was a barrier that Kara wanted to disappear.

When the ship touched down, Kara didn’t look for a door. She pushed through the glass, which shattered across the ship’s floor, and grabbed ahold of Alex. She never wanted to let go.

Kara, exhausted to the point where Alex didn’t want her flying home, flew home. The faster she got there, the faster she could sleep. The window was unlocked as she always left it and she pulled it open, almost tripping across the ledge with her hurry to get inside. The couch in front of her looked mighty nice and she would have dropped down onto it save for noticing a figure standing in the doorway to her bedroom. She straightened up immediately, fists going to her hips, cape flowing easily with the breeze through the window.

She could hear the heartbeat. It wasn’t something she could tell Lena but she could pick Lena out of a crowd by that sound. It was ridiculous how in tune she already was with it. She knew Alex’s, Winn’s, James’ and J’onn’s but that was because his sounded different from anyone else on Earth. She had been getting there with Cat, but then the woman had left and she couldn’t quite remember it. But those hadn’t been easy to learn. They had taken time.

Alex’s was the easiest because for Kara’s first years on Earth, she had been the closest. She had heard it all day, every day. It beat in her ear as Alex held her when she cried. Winn’s was for safety more than anything else. James’ was because she had been in love with him. J’onn’s was interesting. But Lena’s had taken almost no time whatsoever. She had heard it the first time she had ever met Lena and she had done it without even realizing it was happening and then one day, she had heard someone approaching and knew it was Lena before she saw her. That was when she realized the sound was solidified in her head.

She listened to Lena’s heart for any cause of distress. She listened to calm herself. She listened to hear its irregularities. It helped her get to know Lena’s reactions. Sometimes she listened to it and forgot everything else she was doing. Sometimes it was there in the back of her mind and she didn’t even realize she had been paying attention to it.

So, Kara knew the figure was Lena even before she stepped into the light. “Not the woman I was hoping to see tonight.”

Supergirl nodded.“I was just coming to check in on Kara Danvers.”

“She’s not here,” Lena replied. It was as it had been for a while now. Lena was short, curt, and professional with Supergirl.

“Okay, sorry to bother you, Ms. Luthor.”

Supergirl turned to leave the way she had come in when Lena spoke, “Wait.”

Supergirl turned. “Kara, is she okay? Why did you want to check up on her?”

“That’s what friends are for. Goodnight, Ms. Luthor.” She took off, flying back to the DEO to grab the change of clothes she didn’t think she was going to need. But her heart lept in her chest. Lena had stayed. She was still there. She was waiting for her to come home. Kara’s smile was bigger than it had been in days. Things still needed to be fixed. Maggie had taken Alex home. Jeremiah was missing again. They had been so close. Lillian was missing. The cyborg was missing. But they had saved the lives of hundreds of aliens. She didn’t feel guilty about letting herself feel happy.

This time Kara did fall through the front door. Her eyes were unfocused and her head groggy with the need to sleep. The same image appeared before her as it had Supergirl: Lena standing in the doorway of the bedroom, stepping into the light. She wasn’t smiling and Kara’s face fell. “I thought we had agreed on no more MIA.”

Lena had every right to be upset. One phone call or one text, that’s all Kara had needed to do yet she chose not to. And it wasn’t her trying to hurt Lena, which she had obviously done, it was her not knowing how to balance two worlds that were close to colliding. Her head hung, not from fatigue this time. “We did.”

“And yet…” Lena trailed off, not needing to finish the sentence.

“It’s been an intense few days. I’ve been with Alex and Supergirl.”

“That’s funny,” Lena commented. Kara looked at her, confused. Lena was holding her phone and running her thumb over the screen. “Because Maggie has been texting me updates on you.”

Kara was certain that if she checked her phone, Maggie would have sent her a text warning her. She also would have noticed the endless texts and calls from Lena. But she hadn’t even looked at it. “So now you have your friends lying for you."

“I’m not-”

“Either Maggie or Supergirl are lying for you.” Kara had put her foot in her mouth again with her alter ego. It happened every time and she had yet to learn her lesson.

“I was with Maggie too, Lena. I promise you. She just wasn’t there all the time. It was mostly Alex and Supergirl. And yeah, it’s been rough but I should have at least texted you. But I never even looked at my phone. I didn’t know how to deal with the fact that Jeremiah might be back. And sitting around waiting for Alex and Supergirl to give me any news…I was numb. I just slept. It felt like an eternity. I wasn’t thinking. And I’m sorry.”

“And yet you’re still exhausted.” It wasn’t accusatory, there was some concern laced in her words, but it was still a rebuff.

Kara smiled timidly. “I didn’t sleep _well_.”

Lena didn’t say anything more. Kara knew she had screwed up, she knew while she was doing it that she was screwing up and yet she hadn’t made the effort to change it. Kara walked over to the living room. “I’ll take the couch again.”

Lena’s shoulders fell, tension draining though she didn’t look any less upset or annoyed. “Don’t be ridiculous, Kara. You can’t even stand up straight. Come to bed.”

She slumped onto the edge of the bed. The clothes she had at the DEO were the ones she had gone in with when she left three days before. She hadn’t had them on very much but they were stale and sweaty and uncomfortable. Lena noticed and pulled out new clothes for her to wear. “Arms up.”

Kara did as she was told and Lena lifted her shirt up and replaced it. It wasn’t anything sexual or romantic; Kara wasn’t even awake enough to think of anything like that. It was simple and easy and it was Lena taking care of her. That’s what it felt like. It felt good to have something so mundane be an image of so much care. She had never thought of it like that before.

Kara crawled up the bed and collapsed against the pillow feeling Lena move in next to her. They had only slept in the same bed a few times before; this was still new. Kara was already falling asleep and her arms reached out, snaking around Lena’s body and pulling her close. Her voice was a whisper, “I’m sorry I took you for granted. I didn’t expect you to still be here after these past few days.”

“Just because I’m upset didn’t mean I didn’t want to see you as soon as you came home.” Lena shifted their position so Kara became the little spoon. She scooted as far as she could into Lena, the warmth pulling her even more into sleep. “Right now you need to sleep but when you’re ready, I hope you’ll tell me.”

Lena kissed the back of her head and Kara hummed, drifting off to sleep.

Kara told Lena what she could. Supergirl told Lena some other things. Mostly about how Lillian had escaped capture again. She was still at large and a threat to Lena’s life. Lena didn’t seem perturbed by the information. She had, from the beginning, taken risks without question. “Supergirl?”

Supergirl turned back from the balcony where she was taking off. Lena’s face was contorted with mixed emotions. “You always ask me questions and for favors. I have a question to ask you.”

Supergirl put her fists on her hips. “Okay. I’ll answer if I can.”

“Hank Henshaw.” Supergirl readjusted trying not to give anything away. Why Lena was bringing up J’onn’s alter ego, she couldn’t imagine. But then she remembered that that was how J’onn had introduced himself to her. “Hank Henshaw is dead. I know what you’re thinking but I have enough of mother’s old files to know things I shouldn’t have access to. So, I know that man is dead. My question is why one of Kara Danvers’ friends introduced himself under that name.”

Supergirl had to make a quick calculation: telling Lena the truth or making something up. She was never good at the latter. “Hank Henshaw is dead. But as far as the public is concerned, the man you met is Hank Henshaw.”

“He’s an alien,” Lena guessed without a question.

Supergirl nodded. “He is.”

“And so Kara is in the company of two aliens?”

Supergirl looked away. “Isn’t this something you should be discussing with her?”

The sound that came out of Lena was almost a snort. “Kara is the most loyal person I’ve ever met. You of all people should know that. If you think she would say anything concerning you, you’re wrong. You’re almost off limits entirely. But, he doesn’t look unlike the man who attacked L-Corp and works with my mother.”

“I don’t know if you’ll believe me if I tell you.”

Lena pursed her lips. “Aliens exist. I’m sure I can handle it.”

“The Hank Henshaw who is supposed to be dead, is not dead. Your mother turned him into a cyborg. But, I know the Hank Henshaw you met. I work with him. I introduced Kara to him. I can’t tell you anything else –“

“Not even his real name?”

“Especially not his real name. Confidential.” Supergirl grinned. It seemed to lighten the mood a tad. She stepped forward, putting a hand on Lena’s shoulder. Lena looked at it with surprise on her face and slowly turned her head back to Supergirl. “You have no need to worry about him.”

Lena’s face softened and her eyes flickered down to Supergirl’s lips for only a second before she was stepping backward quickly and clearing her throat. “Thank you, Supergirl.”

“You - you’re welcome, Ms. Luthor.” Supergirl was backing up toward the edge of the balcony. She couldn’t figure out what was going on in Lena’s head, whether she had just almost kissed Supergirl or if she knew that she would be kissing Kara. She didn’t have long to wait until she found out. 

The next day, Lena called to see if Kara could stop in at L-Corp.

“Kara, we need to talk.” Those were never good words and Kara felt her heart fall. It had been too much too fast. Lena wanted out.

“Um…okay.”

Lena patted the couch for her to come and sit. Kara had only wanted to bring take out to Lena. She had not expected such a serious atmosphere to welcome her. She set the bag of food on the table and slowly lowered herself next to Lena, wringing her hands. Lena placed a hand over hers to stop the worry fidgeting. “Kara, I think it’s clear at this point that I like you.”

“Well, I’d hope so seeing that you’re my girlfriend.” They had been dating for months. The statement was only buildup.

Lena smiled softly. “But that’s why I need to talk with you. I haven’t said anything about it before because it’s a little humiliating and now I think I should say…You know that I’ve met Supergirl” - Kara had been very much present for those interactions – “She has saved my life a few times actually and its stupid, I know, but” - Lena looked embarrassed –“I’ve developed feelings for her. Maybe it’s only because she’s saved my life so many times but -”

Kara snorted, not able to keep her amusement in. It was rude because Lena was unaware of all the facts but Kara found it endearing that Lena managed to have feelings for the same person twice. Kara’s laughter offended Lena. “I don’t understand what is so funny, Kara.” 

She had been keeping the secret from Lena, not for lack of trust, but for extra protection. J’onn and Alex had warned her to take precautions. Kara would have disclosed the information at some point but Lena springing it on her was not her preferred timing. But it did answer her question from the previous day: Lena didn’t know. “I guess I have something to tell you too, then. It’s a little more shocking.”

Kara was shaky with nerves. Her amusement quickly left her body. She couldn’t help but think of the Luthor family and their history with aliens. Lena was different and had proved that; she had gone up against her mother, saved alien-kind. Kara had no reason to doubt her. Those actions meant her family’s beliefs were not her own.

Kara stood up, releasing her hair from her bun. She lifted her fingers to the top buttons of her blouse and began to undo them.

“Kara, this really isn’t the place for…” Lena gestured vaguely.

Kara stopped, confused until the realization hit and her eyes widened. “Oh, no, no, no, that’s not…I wasn’t…”

Not only was Kara not entirely certain about that part of their relationship yet, she also did not know how she would handle it. Lena was not weak by any means but she would always be stronger. Lena took pity on her. “Then what are you doing?”

It took Kara only a few more buttons before she could pull the shirt apart to reveal the crest of the house of El. There were a few slight, almost imperceptible changes in Lena’s expression and Kara knew she was processing. Kara removed the glasses from her face, folding and unfolding them, waiting for Lena to say something. “I think my straying feelings are more worrisome than you being a super fan.”

They both knew Lena did not believe a word she spoke and Kara was disheartened by her want to believe any other reality.

“That’s not what I was getting at.” Kara lifted from the ground, hovering near the ceiling. “I’m her. You just have feelings for me. That’s why I laughed. I know it must be a shock and you’re probably –“

“Kara.”

“-mad at me for keeping this from you but it's not something I usually tell people. It’s my secret and I have to be careful and oh my god –“

“Kara, come down, please.”

“ –that doesn’t mean I don’t trust you because I do, I really do, I was just trying to protect –“

“KARA, PLEASE COME DOWN!” Kara immediately shut her mouth and lowered to the floor. “It’s very disorienting to see Supergirl babbling like that but it’s cute to see it from Kara and right now you’re both and it’s making it very hard to process.”

Kara hastily buttoned her shirt back up. “Sorry.”

Lena studied her as she pulled her hair back up. “Oh no, there is no need for that.”

Lena stepped toward her and removed Kara’s hands from her hair. Kara looked at her, taken aback and unsure of what she was thinking.

“The thing that entirely escapes me,” Lena began, lacing their fingers together, “is how I missed all the cues. How I never questioned that dorky, cute, klutzy Kara, the girl I’m coming to know so well, is the same person as the well-spoken, courageous, savior of National City.”

Lena’s voice dropped an octave lower and she pulled Kara closer. “Who is also incredibly sexy.”

Kara swallowed hard and shrugged. “It’s the suit.” 

Kara stumbled backward as Lena pushed her into the desk. With any other constitution, the wood would have felt uncomfortable but Kara felt nothing aside from Lena’s hands on her face, pulling her into a kiss. There was so much force that Kara had to maneuver herself to sit on the desk so that she did not push it through the window behind them. From there, Lena took the initiative to climb onto her lap and push her so she was lying down. Lena undid her own blouse and pulled it out from her skirt, exposing a cream lace bra. She had a glint in her eye that would have scared Kara if she were not so certain Lena only had on thing on her mind.

Lena leaned over to kiss her, biting Kara’s bottom lip before the kisses trailed down her neck, sucking on the skin. Lena was unbuttoning the shirt Kara had just buttoned. Her lips on Kara’s skin caused Kara to grab at the ends of the desk, her fingers curling. The snapping sound is what made her say, “Lena, wait.”

Lena’s actions could be so intoxicating that she forgot to keep a check on her strength. That’s what scared her. “Kara, it’s fine. And you can touch me, you know.”

Kara grimaced. “Actually, I can’t.”

She tried to sit up but with Lena still on top of her, she only made it up far enough to lean on her elbows. “I broke your desk.”

Kara followed Lena’s eyes to the two broken pieces of desk that had the vague outlines of fingers. “And this suit isn’t really convenient to take off. I can barely go to the bathroom.”

Lena was still, staring at the desk. Kara sighed. “That’s why I’ve ducked your advances. Sometimes I forget my own strength. That could’ve been you and that was only from a kiss.”

“Kara Danvers, I would love to see what damage you could do,” Lena said, her voice still laced with seduction but Kara shook her head.

“Lena, I’m serious.”

“So, you haven’t been oblivious this entire time like I thought? Sleeping on the couch for so long?”

“I don’t think so?” Kara replied. Maggie had pointed out the signs often enough to the humiliation of both Kara and Alex.

Lena climbed down to re-button her shirt. “It’s probably best to avoid this in the office as it is.”

“So, you don’t care that I’m an alien?” Kara couldn’t put up with the uncertainty of it. No matter what she believed, she needed to here Lena say it.

Lena’s lips curved up. “It was you. You broke the detecting prototype that day when I told you to try it out.”

“That didn’t answer my question.” Kara had her shirt buttoned for the second time and was tugging her bun tighter.

“How can I? I know you, Kara. And Supergirl, you…I don’t know how to address that yet, saved my life more than once. It’s hard to keep the same beliefs when you’ve come into my life and turned everything on its head. I haven’t thought the same things about aliens as the rest of my family even though I still had my reservations. But, I’m not afraid of you and I don’t want anyone else to be either. If you specifically want the answer about the alien detection device, the engineers are still working on it but there aren’t any plans to distribute.”

“I didn’t know that,” Kara admitted.

“Does it surprise you?”

“It just makes me happy. We aren’t all bad.” Kara smiled, a little uncomfortable. She didn’t want Lena to be making an exception for only her. Lena's thoughts about aliens needed to be universal.

Lena leaned in for a kiss. “I could never think of you as anything but good. You have been a shining light in my life, Kara, and Supergirl has had the same effect on the city. It’s enough to make any woman think.”

“But this isn’t just about me –"

She was cut off by a voice in her ear, “Kara, you there? We need you at the DEO.”

Kara winced at the abrupt crackling and Lena looked concerned. Kara tapped her ear. “Work calls.”

“Super business?” Kara nodded, not elaborating. “I know you can’t tell me everything. I wasn’t going to pry.’

Kara let out a breath, thinking of Lillian and Cadmus. “Thanks, Lena, but depending on what it is…I might.”

Lena kissed her cheek, her tone saddened. “I know.”

She tried to put on a brave face. “I’ll call you later, Kara. Go get ‘em, Supergirl.” 

Kara smiled before rushing from the office. J’onn and Alex were both going to be very skeptical of her trust in Lena Luthor. She was not looking forward to the lecture.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've really appreciated all the kudos and knowing people enjoy the fic! Thanks for reading!


	12. Chapter 12

“I caught Mon-El and yelled at him. I feel like a hypocrite.” Her talking made Lena’s lips move to her neck.

“I don’t know who that is.”

“Um, yeah you do. Mike.”

Lena hummed but didn’t act like she had heard Kara or really cared to discuss Mon-El. Kara’s head was back, extending her neck. “I thought you said not in the office.”

Lena detached her lips to look at Kara. “I don’t care what I said.”

Kara gulped from the intensity of the gaze. She was leaning back across the desk, her palms bracing herself on the surface. Lena leaned in, pushing a knee between Kara’s legs. She gasped at the unexpected contact, her hands pushing into the desk. There was a loud crack and in one second she had wrapped an arm around Lena and spun around so they would not tumble down with the crashing desk. It was split entirely down the center, the now two separate ends caving toward each other. Kara was covering her mouth with a hand as Lena’s temporary assistant called in. “Ms. Luthor, are you alright?” 

“Yes, I’m perfectly fine. Thank you.” Lena’s eyes were on fire when she looked back to Kara. “Couch. Now.”

 

Kara paced the office in her underwear with a sweater around her shoulders, gesticulating wildly as she spoke. “I broke the desk. Your desk. I broke your mahogany desk. Your very expensive-looking mahogany desk.”

She threw her hands over her head. “I cracked your desk in half.”

Lena was lounging on the couch, not doing much to cover herself, making Kara blush every time she looked over. Lena had a small, amused smile on her face as she lay and watched Kara babble on. Kara marched closer to her. “Lena, I don’t know if you’ve noticed but I broke your desk.”

“It’s a little hard to miss, Kara. It won’t take much to get it removed and bring in a new one,” Lena explained.

“What do you tell people? How did that” - she emphasized by pointing to the wreckage - “happen?”

“I don’t need to explain anything to anyone.”

“But I _broke_ your desk,” Kara repeated simply. Lena pulled herself off the couch and Kara looked away. Lena took her hands. “Kara, look at me.”

“You’re naked.”    

“Kara, this sense of modesty you are trying to preserve is going to grate given the fact of where your head just was.” Her cheeks were on fire. She looked at Lena but only at her face, focusing on her eyes. “I don’t care about the desk.”

Lena reached behind her to start getting dressed, Kara following suit. When they were both decent, Lena called for the assistant. The young girl saw them both sitting on the couch, then she saw the desk. She didn’t speak but her eyes widened. “Call maintenance to come clear this out and order a new one. I need it by tomorrow.”

The expression on the temp’s face was one of disbelief. There was no way this is what she signed up for when Jess had needed a few days off. The assistant nodded, her eyes darting back and forth. “Yes, Ms. Luthor.”

“See that was simple.”

“How are you going to work now?”

Lena smiled wide, the smile Kara knew most people never saw. She said something Kara never thought she would hear. “I guess I’ll take the rest of the day off.”

 

She hadn’t expected to be beamed up to an intruding alien spacecraft. Or find out the Mon-El was actually the prince of Daxam and had been lying to everyone since he arrived. Or to find out that his parents wanted him back to rule Daxam. Or that they would force her to stay for dinner and make jabs at her being Kryptonian. And she also didn’t expect the anger when Mon-El wanted to have nothing to do with it. They left and he stayed.

He had thought he was the last Daxamite and now he wasn’t. But even so, he didn’t want anything to do with his family or his people or the plans to get his home back. And it was unfair that he wasn’t grateful for the chance because Kara would give absolutely everything for the chance that her parents would come back or that Krypton would still be thriving.

“You have a right to be mad,” Alex offered as support.

Kara growled, “And I am.”

 

**Maggie (2:32pm)** _Who wants to meet at the bar tonight?_

**Winn (2:34pm)** _I’m always there_

**Maggie (2:34pm)** _Who wants to meet at the bar tonight and not have their face smashed up against their girlfriends?_

**Alex (2:36pm)** _…that sounds kinda enticing…_

**Maggie (2:36pm)** _Well that can be arranged, Danvers ;)_

**Kara (2:37pm)** _Grrrrooooooossssss_

**Maggie (2:38pm)** _I always forget Kara’s a baby_

**Winn (2:39pm)** _That’s a double standard_

**Kara (2:43pm)** _I AM NOT. But she’s my sister!_

**Maggie (2:44pm)** _Winn, I bet you 50 dollars that you can’t spend one night without making out with Lyra_

**Winn (2:45pm)** _Easy_

**Maggie (2:47pm)** _That includes sneaking off. Not that that’s something you usually care to do to spare the rest of us_

**Winn (2:49pm)** _Harder but deal_

**Maggie (2:50pm)** _I’m about to be 50 bucks richer, drinks on me_

**Winn (2:51pm)** _James you in???_

**Winn (2:53pm)** _James???_

**Winn (2:53pm)** _Buddy. Pal._

**Winn (2:53pm)** _James are you out there??_

**James (3:10pm)** _Chill out, Winn. Sure_

**Alex (3:13pm)** _Wait, guys. Why don’t we pick another bar?_

**Winn (3:15pm)** _Its kinda hard for Lyra. People stare_

**Alex (3:16pm)** _I know but we do always go there. And Kara’s never mentioned it but she can’t bring Lena_

**James (3:16pm)** _Sorry, Kara. yeah, whatever we decide_

**Winn (3:16pm)** _I get it, I’ll just tell Lyra I have to skip tonight_

**Maggie (3:17pm)** _I’m sure she’ll understand and if not I’m sure the makeup sex will be extremely disgusting for everyone watching you two get it on on the pool table_

**Kara (3:18pm)** _Again…grrrrooooooossssss_

**Maggie (3:18pm)** _Oh, don’t tell me you’re all that innocent little Danvers_

**Alex (3:19pm)** _Okay we’re done with this_

**Winn (3:28pm)** _Lyra and I have never done that_

Kara stared at the text, at Alex trying to stand up for her and include Lena in their plans. It wasn’t worth waiting any longer. She hadn’t really been for any specific reason but she wanted things to cool down after the whole Jeremiah situation. And the fact that they hadn’t gotten any more leads surrounding his whereabouts was disheartening but Alex was taking everything in stride. She had been so close to getting her father back just to have him ripped from her hands again. Not only that, but she had learned about his choice to join Cadmus and though it broke her heart, she still wanted him back. Kara knew exactly what that felt like.

She strode into the main room and held herself up against the console. “There’s something I need to tell you guys.”

J’onn’s face was as unreadable as ever. Alex, on the other hand, was very interested. Kara looked around a little bit, avoiding their eyes before sighing, “Lena knows.”

Silence.

Kara looked back and forth. “Uh…”

“You both forget I can read minds. You came in here right after you told her. It was the loudest thing on your mind, very distracting.”

Kara blanched. “And you didn’t say anything?”

She had expected yelling and disappointment and another discussion of trustworthiness. “I don’t listen on purpose so I don’t make decisions for people. And besides, it had been done.”

“How long has she known?” was Alex’s first question. Kara shrugged. “I don’t know. A couple weeks. After Jeremiah.”

“Oh.”

“Alex, I was gonna tell you –“

Alex waved her off. “No, it’s fine.”   

“Alex,” Kara pleaded but her sister was already walking away. “It’s fine, Supergirl.”

She looked to J’onn who regarded her as he usually did, commandeering and understanding. “This is between you and her.”

She ran after her sister, almost colliding with another agent who stepped out of her way as quickly as he could. “Alex!”

Alex wasn’t looking at her and dismissed Kara with a wave of her hand. “I’m not mad, Supergirl.”           

Kara snorted. “Yeah, okay, I believe that.”

Alex turned to face her, quicker than Kara was expecting. “You’ve started to keep secrets.”

Kara didn’t have an excuse, at least any that would really matter. Alex’s hands were on her hips, more confidently than Kara ever felt in the stance, and she was looking off to the side, staring at the expanse of unentertaining gray wall. “And now after everything that happened with Jeremiah, especially after that, I thought we would always be honest with each other. We have always been before. And you lied about Lena” - Alex put her hands up to stop Kara from interrupting like she wanted to - “and yes, I totally understand. You wanted something solid before you told people.”

Alex’s shoulders sagged. “But I’m your sister and I’ve always been there for you. I need you to stop keeping me out of the loop. It’s not that big of something to ask of you.”

Kara was looking at her feet, the tips of her red boots clicking together. “I know. I should have told you right away. I wanted to. But everything with Jeremiah was so fresh it didn’t seem like the right time. And I thought you would be angry because that’s another person who knows.”

“Kara,” Alex said, breaking the pretense of Supergirl that she almost always kept up inside the DEO, “she’s your girlfriend. And my girlfriend knows about you.”

“You didn’t tell her though,” Kara pointed out and Alex nodded in agreement. “But she knows now. And it feels so much freer knowing that I’m not hiding it from her. You shouldn’t have to either. Especially when it’s your secret.”

Kara fell into the wall next to her. “But it’s a secret that affects every single person living in this city. And it affects the people I care about most, my friends” - she met Alex’s eyes – “you. And before now, you didn’t want her to know.”

Alex pursed her lips. “That was before I realized just how much trust you put in her. And if you trust her, then so do I. She’s a part of your life now whether I would have chosen that for you before, doesn’t matter. It is what it is. As long as your happy, Kara. That’s all I want. For you to be safe and happy.”

Kara smiled. “I am.”

Alex reached out and squeezed her shoulder. “Just talk to me then.”

Kara pulled her sister into a hug, despite the “oof” that Alex let out when she squeezed too tightly. “It’s that easy?”

Alex leaned back, Kara letting up so that she could move. “You’re my sister. No matter what, it’s always going to be that easy.”

 

Kara thought she should call Lena to ask about going out with her friends. It wasn’t a friend problem; it was a location problem. “Kara? Are you alright?”          

“Yeah! Why wouldn’t I be?” Kara asked, suddenly nervous she was interrupting something.

“Just that it’s the middle of the afternoon and you usually just text. Not that I mind hearing your voice,” Lena explained. Kara could see the smile playing across Lena’s lips and smiled at nothing. She was on the balcony of CatCo, looking out across the city so no one would notice. Also, no one would be able to hear what she was talking about. “Maggie texted and wants to get everyone together at the bar tonight. I was calling to see if you wanted to come.”

“The bar?” Lena picked up on the wording immediately like Kara had hoped. She didn’t really know how to broach the subject. They hadn’t discussed it since Kara told her she was Supergirl and mentioned the alien detection device. There was still a part of her that wasn’t sure where Lena stood on aliens and going to a bar full of them could make her uncomfortable. Kara really wanted to share it with Lena because that was a place where she could let go entirely and be herself. Not Supergirl but alien. No one asked questions.

“Um,” Kara started, “there’s a bar that we all go to. And they wanted to go tonight.”

“Why does is sound like there’s a problem?” Lena questioned. It was reasonable for her to be confused, Kara wasn’t being the clearest. “Okay, well I told Alex and J’onn that you know.”

“You did? And is everything okay?” There was a hint of shock in Lena’s voice.

“They’re actually completely fine with it.”

There was a soft sigh from Lena that anyone but Kara would have missed. “But what does this have to do with the bar that we are going to?”

“Alex offered to go somewhere else, that was before she knew you knew, but I would really like you to come with us if you felt okay about it. It’s just the place we usually hang out. Maggie introduced us all to it. We’ve kinda become regulars. It’s a dive and all and I know you’re used to –

“Kara, you’re rambling again,” Lena said, her voice tinged with admiration. It was how she always sounded when she pointed out Kara’s tendency to never stop talking. Kara never actually meant to do it. It was a defense mechanism but Lena had told her it was endearing. Kara breathed it all out at once. “It’s an underground alien bar.”

“Okay.” Kara waited for Lena to continue but she didn’t. “And you’re not uncomfortable with that?”

“I don’t know,” Lena disclosed. “I’ve never been there. I guess we’ll find out tonight.”

 

Kara scuffled her feet against the gravel. The alley was not pretty, not that most alleys were but she just could not imagine Lena Luthor walking down the uneven, dirty ground in her high heels, next to dumpsters and crumbling walls. Inside, Alex, Maggie, James, J’onn, who had ended up showing up despite not responding to their texts, Winn, and Lyra were at a table. At least they were when Kara left them to wait outside for Lena. Despite the bet, Lyra probably had Winn in her clutches and Maggie and Alex were doubtlessly at the pool table again. She had not realized Mon-El was still working at the bar but he had shouted a loud, “Hey!” that she could hear outside when each one of them had arrived. He was getting better; he knew what a soda water was at least.

Kara fell against the brick wall of the inconspicuous bar hidden away for safety. Lights flashed far down the alley and Kara sped down it in time to see Lena step out of her car. Her driver was looking around with a concerned look at her choice of destination but did not question her. “I won’t need to be picked up. Have a good night.”

The car drove off and Lena was looking away from Kara, trying to establish where she was. Kara stepped out from the shadows, smiling. “Hey.”

Lena turned at her name, surprised but not startled. “I do have to say that we won’t have to worry about the press finding us out here. I’m not sure they even know this place exists.”     

“Good,” Kara said. They had been caught on multiple occasions out together and though the articles and photos were entirely speculative, they were still enough to give both of the women some trouble. Snapper would not let Kara live it down and scowled that now Lena was off-limits for Kara, she was too close to the situation. Kara argued with and would continue to argue with him. She was not letting it drop that easily. Her relationship with Lena had never been quite separate from her work. But Lena, who was accosted much more by the press than Kara was, being the press herself, was being bombarded with questions about their relationship. It had to be tiring. Lena owned a company but they were diminishing her accomplishments to discuss her dating life.

Lena smiled. “I suppose that’s true.”

She was still looking around, her hands clasped in front of her. “You’re nervous.”

“Kara, I’m a Luthor walking into a safe haven for aliens.” Kara's jaw dropped and her eyes widened.

“I’m guessing you hadn’t thought of that.” Lena reached out for Kara’s hand. “And I appreciate that you didn’t think of that.”   

“I just always forget –“

“That I’m a Luthor.”

“Because that’s not all you are,” Kara told her. She didn’t know how many times she had told Lena that but she would do it as many times as she needed to.

“But to everyone who doesn’t know me like you do. I am only a Luthor. A name they don’t trust. A name that specifically aliens don’t trust.”

Kara looked back down the alley. Her glasses blocked her view but she knew if she could see inside, she would see everyone gathered around the table, laughing over drinks. Alex would have her arm around Maggie. Lyra would be sitting in Winn’s lap. James would be trying to fist bump Winn but pulling back whenever Winn got close and then laughing as he duped him again and again. J’onn would be sitting back in his chair with his drink, watching with the soft smile on his face that he only reserved for them. She yearned to be in there with them. The people that knew her secret and didn’t care. The people who were there for her no matter what. But when she looked back to Lena, that all faded because she realized she was all of that for Lena and her friends would be just fine without her for one night. “I should have thought of that, Lena. We don’t have to go in.”

“We most certainly are going in.”

Lena was giving Kara whiplash. “I’m so confused.”

Lena kissed the back of Kara’s hand that was holding her own. “Just because I’m nervous does not mean I was not going to go in. I can’t let that stop me. And anyway, a Luthor would never step foot in an alien bar to have drinks with friends. Their motives would be much different. Maybe I can change some minds.”

Kara intertwined their arms. “This was supposed to be a night out. You shouldn’t be working.”

Lena started walking. Kara had to follow so she wasn’t just tugged along. “My image follows me everywhere, Kara. I can’t just stop because I’d like to have a night off.”

“That’s what this is about.” Kara gestured at the white blouse that was tucked tightly into the black pencil skirt and her usual heels. Her eyes hovered over Lena’s waist where the fabric hugged her form. She cleared her throat. “Are you gonna be able to walk back there in those?”

Lena tilted her head. “Maybe you’ll just have to carry me.”

Kara’s head snapped up. She hadn’t realized she was staring. Lena was smirking. “I think I can handle it.”

She had taken hold of Lena’s hand and checked one more time that she was sure before she opened the door and guided her in. They stopped in the entrance. Lena took the time to look around. Kara had to talk a little louder to be heard over the din, “I know it’s dingy and not really your forte but-“

“It’s charming,” Lena said smiling.

“But are you really okay?”

Lena leaned over to whisper so she wouldn’t be heard, not that it helped entirely. Kara was certain there were other alien species in the bar that had sensitive hearing. “I’m realizing how very naïve I’ve been.”

Kara’s eyebrows wrinkled. “How?”

Lena gestured around vaguely. “My entire life aliens have been talked about as something other. Not described or explained except as negative beings. And then Superman showed up and then you of course and you both look human. The only other experiences I’ve had with aliens have been through images and fuzzy videos on the news. It’s been a very small pool of species and I’m not sure I even imagined what it meant to how vast the universe actually is. This is incredible.”

Kara didn’t really know what to say. She and Lena had never talked in depth about aliens on Earth. Kara was nervous about that conversation. Lena never brought it up so this was the first time she was hearing anything of what Lena thought. And she definitely looked interested from a scientific standpoint, but Kara couldn’t begrudge her that; many species were interested in others in the same way. But the way she spoke was from more of a social and belief standpoint, like she was trying to learn a new way of thinking. Kara wanted to punch herself because that’s exactly what Lena had always said she wanted and that’s what everything she had done had shown. Hearing it was something different entirely. “But I am still nervous.”

“Did you expect everyone to turn and look as soon as you walked in the door?” Kara asked.

Lena chuckled. “Something like that.”

Kara squeezed her hand in reassurance and tugged. “Come on. Let’s go.”


	13. Chapter 13

Winn was the first out of his seat, “Lena! I have been dying to –“

“Winn” - Kara placed her hand on his arm - “Could you give her like five seconds before attacking her with questions?”

“It’s fine, Kara,” Lena said, smiling. She reached a hand out. “Give me your phone. I’ll add my number and whenever you have a question, just text me.”

Winn’s mouth was gaping wide open. “Um…yeah, yeah of course.”

He fumbled for his phone while Alex pulled Kara into a hug. “Glad you could make it.”           

Kara beamed into her sister’s hair. “Glad you’re being open to this.”

Alex pulled back to look Kara in the eye. “I was just trying to protect you. I always will. But I don’t really think you need protection from her.”

Kara’s eyes widened. “That’s a change.”

Alex shrugged, sitting back down. “You persuaded me. And I trust you, Kara.”

“What can I get y-Kara!” Mon-El seemed stunned to see her there even if it was amongst her friends. She was there often. They never talked but this shouldn't have been a surprise to him. “Um…so what can…what can I get you?”

“Um…” Kara didn't know how to not be weird around Mon-El. He had shown a definite interest in her and she had never been on any page aside from friendship. That was not something she wanted so they were occasional, very occasional, colleagues and mostly just acquaintances. And their most recent disagreement about Daxam was freshly on her mind. “Mon-El, yeah, hi.”

She turned to Lena, blinking. “Uh, yeah, Mon-El. This is Lena Luthor.”

“I know.” Lena was looking to Kara with a questioning expression. She seemed to know the face but wasn’t sure how. “So, this is Mike. He was at your gala.”

Lena’s eyes flickered to Mon-El. “The boy you danced with.”

Kara cleared her throat. “Yeah, his name isn’t exactly Mike.”

“I’ve gathered.” She was glaring at Mon-El in a way Kara wished she never would look at her. Her gaze did not move even as she spoke with Kara, “He’s the one who-?”

“Yeah.” Kara looked at the floor, trying to erase the memory of Mon-El and Eve in the copy room from her mind.

“Red wine, please. Just a glass. Cabernet is fine.”

“I’ll just have a soda water,” Kara commented. She turned to Lena. “You know, I’m actually gonna go and make sure you don’t get something terrible. He’s not great at this yet.”

Mon-El had already bumbled away but Kara went up to the bar anyway, leaving Lena to pull up a chair next to Winn. “Mon-El.”

“That’s why you didn’t want to date me,” Mon-El sneered.

It took all of her to take a deep breath instead of jumping over the bar. She pressed against it, hearing the wood creak against the strain. “I didn’t want to date you because I wasn’t interested.”           

“But you’re with the Luthor now?”

Kara gritted her teeth so hard she almost hurt herself. “I am with Lena now, yes.”

“On Daxam, it’s the more the merrier.”

“Well on Earth, it’s if you’re not a nice person, you don’t get what you want.”

“Are you sure that’s not Krypton?” Mon-El jabbed.

She pointed at him. “That right there is answer enough.”

She shook her head. “Just give me the drinks.”

He softened immediately, all defensiveness depleted from his body. “Kara, please.”

“Please what, Mon-El? I’ve tried. I’ve tried so hard with you and you don’t want anything from me other than the one thing I’m not willing to give you. I offered to train you. To make you into a hero. You turned me down when you realized you wouldn’t get the only thing you wanted out of it. I can’t help that. I was willing to be your friend if you were willing to at least try. I can’t make you do anything you don’t want to do. I’ve learned that. So just let me be.”     

He studied her for a second before pushing the glasses toward her. “I know Earth’s alcohol isn’t potent for you but if you ever wanted to let loose a little, just let me know.”

“What’s the supposed to mean?” Kara challenged.

Mon-El was shocked. “No, I didn’t mean whatever it is you’re thinking. I just…there are drinks out there that can work on Daxamites so I’m sure they can work on Kryptonians and we have them here. Just ask.”

“I can’t let go, you know that.”

He smiled. “You would never forget.

Her eyes didn’t leave him as she grabbed her drinks and returned to the table. His quick change of heart didn’t make sense and she didn’t believe anything about it; it was too opportune.

Winn was introducing Lena to Lyra, which may have been a mistake. Lyra had a temper when she thought someone was insulting her and Lena was asking very intrusive questions. Winn was watching hesitantly but his girlfriend seemed to be just fine. Kara smiled. Despite Lena’s sometimes-unapproachable presence, there was a quality about her that drew people in once they got talking to her. She could be extremely easy-going if she wanted to and Kara noticed her ease around Kara’s friends. She let her passion take over whenever she was talking to Winn and now Kara saw that same thing happening with Lyra. She wanted to learn and educate herself and she was excited to do so.

Kara passed Lena her drink and the woman only paused to smile at her before her attention was strictly on Lyra again. Kara was perfectly comfortable standing by her side and watching. It was one of her favorite things to do.

 

Maggie did the unthinkable. But for Maggie it wasn’t really unthinkable. She tricked Kara into the alien brew Mon-El had told her about and it only took a couple sips before Kara’s intolerance kicked in and her brain started to go fuzzy. Maggie had really wanted her to try something and so Kara had acquiesced knowing she would be perfectly fine despite the sour taste in her mouth for the rest of the night. It had tasted a little strange at first, not so sour and not so harsh but she didn’t give it much thought. It was when the drink was halfway gone that she began to be clued in. Maggie was just watching her, gauging her reaction.

It started off with uncontrollable giggles which everyone but Maggie just ignored as Kara being Kara but then Alex took notice and the crease in her forehead deepened. And then J’onn caught on and started watching her. Winn and Lyra were too busy wrapped up in each other to notice anything. But much to Maggie's chagrin, he was still on good terms with the bet. Maggie was laughing at her and walked away with James to play pool. Lena had an arm around her waist, not quite holding her up but enough to keep her stable. She had not mentioned the sudden change in Kara. “Kara, can you come with me to the restroom for a minute?”

“Suuuuure,” Kara said, still giggling. Lena followed Kara’s directions but was really the one leading.

She leaned Kara against the sink and wet her hands, laying them on Kara’s face and patting her cheeks. “Are you okay?”

“I’ve never felt like this before,” Kara said. Everything was pulsing. It seemed close in one moment and far in the next. She laughed at nothing in particular. It just felt good to let it out.

She found herself sitting on the counter, not exactly sure when she had gotten there. Lena was too far away though. That much she knew. So she did the only thing she could do and pulled her close. Kara couldn’t remember if she had always loved kissing Lena this much but she supposed she had. It was different though; it was a lot wetter and much more sloppy. Lena pulled back very quickly and Kara frowned. Lena studied her face. “How do you feel?”

Kara didn’t feel like her lips were forming the right shape. “Floaty” - and then she laughed – “But I’m not floating.”

“Kara, you’re drunk.” That was confusing. She couldn’t get drunk. She shook her head adamantly. “Yes, you are darling.”

“But I can’t get dru…oh,” she said, remembering her conversation with Mon-El. “But I didn’t drink any of tha – of what – I didn’t drink that stuff.”

“I think Maggie thought she was pulling a little joke. I don’t think she thought you’d get this drunk.”

Kara tried to get up but almost fell off the sink. To catch herself, she grabbed onto the towel dispenser, crushing the plastic that sprinkled to the floor in pieces. Lena had stepped back to avoid the possibly sharp rubble. Kara pointed. “Oooohhhhh, no. I did that. I didn’t mean to do that.”

Alex busted through the bathroom door. It was so loud Kara covered her ears. “I think its eve - even more sensitive now. Hey. Hey. Yoo-you look like my shiss—sissss-ter.”   

“Are you slurring your words?” Alex said. It wasn’t angry just a little flabbergasted.

“Am I?” she sat up straighter, Lena holding her shoulders so she didn’t fall into something again. “Schoco…late. Schocolate.”

“Wow, Kara Danvers, drunk. That’s a first.” Kara tried to hold in her laugh and shrunk her head down as far into her neck as she could go. She felt like a turtle. Alex saw the debris. “Did she do that?”

Lena nodded. “Unfortunately.”

“I’m driving you home,” Alex commanded.

“I’m not flying, that’s for sure!” she exclaimed, laughing and leaning forward so much that Lena had to push her back with a grunt.

“Do you want me to stay?”

Lena shook her head. “I think I’ve got it.”

Alex nodded before leaving. “BYE ALEX!”

“Sssshhh, Kara, you don’t have to yell.”

Her eyes widened. “I was yelling?”

She put her hands in front of her face, moving them around. Every time they came in contact with her face, it shocked her and her nose crinkled. “Everything’s really bright.”

“The lighting isn’t great in here,” Lena explained.

Kara shook her head, only making herself dizzier. She squinted. “I don’t believe you but it’s not just that. Everything is a lot more than usual.”

She didn’t have the words to explain it but she could hear everything and see everything and Lena’s touch sent sparks across her body. It happened when she touched Lena too. It was a shock to her system that she didn’t know how to tolerate. She waved her hands around and Lena moved her head out of the way so she didn’t get hit. “It’s a lot.”

“Oh,” Lena said, finally understanding. She pulled Kara into a hug, and Kara hid her face from the outside world. Even in the muffled space of Lena’s shirt, Kara felt everything and she could hear everything but at least she didn’t have to see everything. With one sense cut out, it all felt a little more bearable. Lena’s fingers were running through Kara’s hair and it calmed her. She was by no means sobered up but she felt like she could handle herself. She sat back. “I didn’t realize I wouldn’t beeeee able to control it.”

“That’s what alcohol does.”           

“Issss weird.” Kara closed her eyes. “I don’t think I like it.”

“That’s okay. You don’t ever have to do it again.” 

“I’m sorry,” Kara said, her head hanging much heavier than usual. “I didn’t want the night to end up like thisssss. I just wanted you to come out with me.”

“I don’t mind,” Lena offered.

“But now you have to take care of me innnssstead of having fun,” her words were staggered but she got them all out.

Lena smiled and stroked her cheek. “I don’t mind.”

“You should,” Kara said. Everything she felt was a lot. Those were the only words she had for it. There was not any in between. She couldn’t keep a check on what she wanted or what she was doing. Everything was jumbled and intensified.

“Kara Danvers, I love taking care of you.”

Kara couldn’t help the dopey smile that appeared on her face but then again, she couldn’t help much of what she was currently doing. Lena was smiling at her adoringly and she wouldn’t have wanted anything else at that moment but to be there with Lena who didn’t care that she could get intoxicated from a couple sips of a drink. She had a sudden idea and her head popped up. Her mind seemed perfectly clear. She took Lena’s hands and looked her directly in the eye. “We should get married.”

Lena’s face paled and she choked out. “What?”

“We should get married.”   

She swallowed hard. “No, I heard you the first time. We should definitely not do that.”

Kara shrugged. The feeling of importance was slipping through her fingers. “Okay.”

Lena stared at her. “Do you know what you just asked me?”

Kara cocked her head. “I asked you something?”

“Okay” - Lena let out a deep breath - “Let’s go.”

Lena helped Kara out of the bathroom and back to the table where Maggie was bent over laughing at her predicament. Kara waved a hand. “I’m fine. I’m fine.”

“Sure you are,” J’onn said, helping Lena sit her in a chair.

“Hey, you’re really tall,” she said, looking up at J’onn from her seat. He didn’t seem as amused as she did and started walking away. “Hey, where’d you go?” - Alex turned her in her chair - “Oh, there you are!”

“Is she drunk?” Winn said, coming over and getting very close to Kara’s face. Kara poked his cheek. He startled making her laugh. She didn’t seem to be able to stop laughing.

Alex shook her head. “It’s partially my fault. Maggie here thought it would be funny to pull a prank on her. I on the other hand disagree.”

“Don’t even go there, Danvers. This is hilarious.”

“My sister being drunk is not that funny especially when you know what she could do.”

Lena added, “It’s hard for her to control the super part of herself right now.”

“Shit,” Maggie digressed, “I’m sorry. I didn’t think about that.”

Kara was turning her head between everyone who was talking but it didn’t seem to make much sense. Her head was getting really heavy and so were her eyes so she pressed it against the cool wooden tabletop.

“Kara, we should get goi-“ Alex looked over but Kara was already fast asleep, with her head on the table and nothing to think about.

 

She groaned away the sleep and felt her head push into something squishy. “Kara?”

The noise that came out of her mouth was a whine, “Comfy.”

There was a soft chuckle. “My boobs are comfy?”

Kara’s eyes shot open and she realized she was in her room, lying on her bed with her head across Lena’s chest. She felt her face heat but snuggled closer and shut her eyes again. “Your boobs are very comfy.”

at

A hand gently stroked her hair and she hummed. “Are you feeling okay this morning? Do you remember last night?”

Kara’s face scrunched up as she racked her brain. “We went to the bar. Maggie got me drunk.”

“That all?” Lena questioned.

Kara nodded. “Was there something else?”

“Nothing important.” There was silence and she thought she was going to fall back to sleep with Lena’s fingers running through her hair and the hot sun on her face. Lena’s voice erased the bleariness, “But are you feeling alright?”

Kara sat up. Lena was lying back in bed, watching her and Kara remembered something else. “I thought Alex was taking me home.”

Lena smiled. “I didn’t want to leave you alone all night.”

“You stayed?”

“Well, I’m here so…”

Kara leaned over and kissed her. Lena’s eyes were closed and she was smiling when she said, “That wasn’t an answer. How are you feeling?”

Kara shrugged. “I feel fine.”

“You’re not hung over?” Lena’s eyes narrowed.

Kara bounced on the bed a couple times. “I’m an alien!”


	14. Chapter 14

She stared at Lena whose eyes widened. “Oh, was that a hint?”

Kara nodded. “I’m a very hungry alien.”

“Are you trying to get me to make you breakfast?” Lena teased, her nose scrunching in the way that Kara always thought was cute.

Kara jumped off the bed and dashed into the kitchen, pulling out bowls. “Pancakes!”

Lena appeared and Kara looked at her shocked. “Why didn’t you change?”

“I pretty much passed out right after you,” she shrugged.

Kara waved her off. “Well, go change then. Pancakes can wait.”

Lena disappeared and Kara leaned against the counter, pulling out her phone. She needed to check in with Alex about the night before.

 **Sent (8:12 am)** _Sorry about last night????_

Kara flicked on the television as she waited for her sister to answer. The morning news drifted quietly out of the speakers.

 **Alex (8:15 am)** _How are you awake?_

 **Alex (8:15am)** _Why are you asking your apology_

 **Sent (8:15am)** _Sorry about last night_

 **Alex (8:16am)** _And?_

 **Sent (8:16am)** _I woke up, idk_

_**Alex (8:18am)** It wasn't your fault. Seriously, don't apologize  
_

**Alex (8:18am)** _How are you feeling_

 **Sent (8:18am)** _Perfect_

**Alex (8:19am)** _…_

 **Sent (8:19am)** _Promise, must be an alien thing_

 **Alex (8:20am)** _It was alien alcohol. Must be a Lena knows how to take care of a drunk girl thing_

 **Sent (8:21am)** _:p_

 **Alex (8:22am)** _Did she tell you what happened?_

 **Sent (8:22am)** _No_

 **Sent (8:22am)** … _Alex what did I do?_

 **Sent (8:22am)** _Oh my gosh, what did I do?_

 **Alex (8:23am)** _You broke a towel dispenser in the bathroom_

 **Sent (8:23am)** _WHYD YOU HAVE TO SAY IT LIKE IT WAS SOMETHING TERRIBLE_

 **Alex (8:24am)** _How was I supposed to say it_

 **Sent (8:24am)** _Oh idk just like hey you broke a towel dispenser last night. There was no need for lead up_

 **Alex (8:25am)** _Hey you broke a towel dispenser last night_

 **Sent (8:25am)** _I hate you_

 **Alex (8:26am)** _I hate you too_

“Who’s that?” Lena had returned and Kara blushed, looking away from the incredibly short spandex shorts she had on.

Kara pointed. “That’s my shirt.”

Lena looked down and grabbed at the fabric and with faux concern said, “Oh, do you want it back? I can take it off.”

Kara swallowed. “Nope. It’s fine.”

Kara stared and Lena smirked. “So…pancakes.”

“Yes, pancakes.”

Lena wrapped her arms around Kara and set her chin on Kara’s chest, looking up at her face. “You know I don’t really cook, right?”

Kara nodded. “I don’t cook either.”

She reached around Lena and grabbed a box off the counter. “That’s why I’ve got this stuff. It’s easy. I only burn them half the time.”

Lena looked at her for a second before snatching the box. “I will be doing it then."

“Okay,” Kara yipped, kissing her forehead and seating herself at the island.

Lena narrowed her eyes. “This was your plan all along.”

Kara shrugged. “You’re the one who said you would make me breakfast.”

“I said no such thing.” Lena smiled, already starting to mix the pre-made pancake batter.

They turned out not burnt and Kara had jumped up and threw chocolate chips in them, much to Lena’s dismay. “You couldn’t just have regular pancakes.”

Kara frowned. “What’s the fun in that? When I was younger Eliza used to make pictures with the chocolate chips.”

Lena carried the plates to the counter and again, tugged at the shirt she was wearing. “Speaking of being younger…”

The shirt read _Midvale High_. Kara chuckled half-heartedly. “Yeah, it doesn’t actually fit me anymore.”

“Then why do you still have it?” Lena asked seriously.

Kara shrugged, trying to find an answer that evaded her. “Sentimentality?”

Lena looked over her fork at Kara as if having a sentimental connection to high school was the least reasonable answer she could have come up with. Kara shoved a forkful into her mouth and shrugged again. Lena repeated it back at her, “Sentimentality.”

“Why not?”

“Because that’s obviously a load of crap,” Lena said

Kara snorted. “I never thought that sentence would come out of your mouth.”

Lena didn’t say anything else and she didn’t need to. Kara always eventually caved and the silence only made it harder for her to stop the rambling. She inhaled half of her stack of pancakes just to be stubborn before she gave in. “If not sentimentality, then what?”

Lena didn’t give her a response; it was rhetorical. “Maybe to remember when I first got here. To remember the tough times trying to become who I am now. It wasn’t necessarily a pleasant time.”

Kara set her fork down and Lena followed suit, increasingly intent now that Kara was choosing to talk instead of eating. Kara wasn’t looking at Lena; she was looking out the window at National City as the sun glinted off the glass of the buildings. She was looking at a city she loved. She was looking at the place that had become home.

The shirt wasn’t something she usually had on her mind or even saw. She wasn’t even sure how Lena had found it. But, it was a reminder. “I didn’t fit in. I was weird. I was still learning how to be human. About the culture. About the emotions. About the behaviors. The language I had picked up in a day. Not fluently but enough to get by. It was everything else. So, that’s what I focused on. I had to be human.”

“But I wasn’t. And I knew that” - Kara fiddled with her glasses - “I wear these now for disguise though Maggie hasn’t been shy in mentioning it doesn’t really help.” Lena smiled warmly at that. “But originally, my da – Jeremiah made them to help me adjust. They’re lined with lead and they helped keep my pew pew" - she made little lasers with her fingers near her eyes - “and it helped even more so with seeing everything. At first, I couldn’t focus. A shirt wasn’t a shirt but the little tiny strands of fabric it was made up of. Depth perception was difficult when I could see through things. I was never sure -.”

“Now I can control that just fine. And then there was the sensory overload of my hearing. It hurt. A lot. Everything was just so…loud.”

“Like when you were drunk?” Lena pointed out.

“Eh, not really. That wasn’t as bad. I could hear a lot but nothing actually hurt. Sounds were just coming from everywhere. When I first landed, everything was so loud it was painful. I got that under control. The strength was something else entirely and to be honest, I’m still working on that.”

Lena teased. “You broke my desk.”

Kara nodded, not smiling. “It scares me. That I can lose control like that.”

She looked down at her plate and picked at the pancakes she had yet to eat. “I ripped apart a government-created robot, granted it turned sentient and evil, but J’onn had to step in to stop me. I’ve left enough holes in the walls of the DEO when a case went wrong. And when I first came, I couldn’t hold a pencil without snapping it. I had to pull back everything. It was conscious. It’s not so much anymore but it felt like I was tiptoeing around myself.”

“So I was the weird one who didn’t talk. Who didn’t understand anything anyone was talking about. Who didn’t look people in the eye. Who had to have her older sister do everything for her. Who would have panic attacks in the middle of the hallway. And they didn’t know but…who wasn’t human. That was the problem. I didn’t fit in because I wasn’t one of them so my entire life became structured around being as human as I could possibly be. Passing. And now I’m here,” Kara said, vaguely gesturing around. She tried to make her voice lighter. “And I got here because I went through all of that. I don’t think I could forget it but that” - she pointed at the shirt - “is just a reminder. To be human.”

“You don’t sound so-”

Kara tuned out from Lena, her attention turned to the television set. The image showed Midtown Park in havoc as an alien rampaged through. Kara jumped up. “I gotta go.”

Lena turned to see what Kara had seen. Kara left a lingering kiss on Lena’s lips. She had taken to doing so whenever she was going in for a fight. She had made the decision to not think of the reason behind the choice and instead just enjoyed Lena smiling against her lips. Lena squeezed her hand. “Be safe.”

“Always am.” Kara smirked.

Lena cocked her head to the side. “I’m going to have to disagree with you.”

With a whoosh, Kara left Lena in the apartment as she soared toward the park. “Alex?”

“Supergirl,” her sister’s voice came through.

“I’m headed to the park.”

“Do you need backup?”

Supergirl smiled to herself. “I think I can handle this one.”

As she came upon the park, she saw the alien shooting lasers from an eye patch wrapped around his head. Parts of the park were on fire, benches overturned, trashcans spilling out, and people running. She stepped in front of a man and woman just in time, the laser hitting her chest. She met him with her heat vision but he pushed and overtook her. She was sent flying, leaving a trench in the ground. He roared and growled at her and she rolled her eyes. “There’s no need to be so dramatic.”

She sped up from the ground with an uppercut to the jaw and a series of punches to his torso. He tried to set off his laser again but she shoved a hand over it and it blew up in his face, sending him flying backward and knocking over a streetlight.

“Can we get some agents in here to clean this up?” Supergirl clapped her hands together at her success.

“Already on their way.”

Kara landed in the DEO seconds later. “What a way to start the morning.”

Alex smiled at her, shaking her head. “I had knife training so I win.”

Kara snorted. “No, you don’t. I just kicked some alien ass. That always wins.”

Kara put her hands on her hips, looking around. “Is J’onn here?”

“Somewhere,” Alex waved her comment off.

“Okay, well I need to get to CatCo.”

“Go on,” Alex gave her permission. “I’ll tell him you stopped in.”

 

Snapper did not care about the alien attack. “There’s one every other week. It’s not news.”

His team of reporters looked around at each other but did not question their boss. He passed out assignments and when no one moved, finally looked up at them. “Well, get going.”

There was a hustle to look busy and Kara floated out of the way. She went to find James in his office. He looked up from his desk, his usual large smile spreading across his face. “Hey, Kara.”

“Hey, James!”

He leaned back in his chair. “What can I do for you?”

Kara adjusted her glasses. It was her nervous tell but she could never help it. “Um…Snapper wants me to do an article on Guardian.”

James’ face lit up and she hated to have to tell him it wasn’t good news. “About why Guardian didn’t show up this morning.”

“Ah,” he said, pursing his lips.

“Are you okay with me asking you questions? We can do it later. Out of the office.”

James nodded. “I think that would be best. Anyway, it looks like you have a visitor.”

Kara turned around to find Lena knocking on James’ office door. “Lena!”

She was holding a box out and Kara turned back to James to finish their discussion but he was waving her away. “You can have a Guardian interview. But later.”

Kara unprofessionally skipped out of James’ office into the arms of a smiling Lena. Lena’s voice was muffled by Kara’s sweater. “You didn’t get to finish breakfast and I thought you would be hungry.”

Lena wiggled a container in front of Kara. Her eyes lit up. “Famished.”

“That’s a bit of an exaggeration, right?” Lena cocked her head.

Kara rolled her eyes. “I just fought an alien. I’m extra hungry.”

 

She met James in the still empty office where Winn had set up a temporary workstation for super-related activities. They had moved out of that but no one had moved in so they could talk in private.

“I don’t know why this is even a story, James. I’m sorry that I have to ask you these questions. It’s not even a big deal. I took care of it anyway,” Kara rambled on, feeling bad that Snapper was angling to show Guardian in a less than favorable light. Kara herself would still prefer that James would stop throwing himself into danger as he did as Guardian. She wished he could see that he was a hero without the armor. But she had also come to realize that she couldn’t dictate how he wanted to help people. So, she had let it go.

He waved away her concern. “It’s fine, Kara. I’m learning there’s a certain level of responsibility I now hold in the eyes of the city. They know I exist, whether they think it’s good or bad doesn’t matter. I’m here so I should be doing something. But go ahead” - he leaned back on the couch - “ask away.”

She pulled out her notepad. “Okay then first off, why weren’t you there this morning?”

“There’s a man behind the mask and that man has a job. I’m only one person. I can’t be everywhere, all the time.”

“But if you have this responsibility, doesn’t that come first?”

James looked out the window, pondering. It was loaded. She wasn’t going easy on him. Supergirl always came first. Kara would run out of CatCo with an excuse flying behind her when she was needed. But James chose not to do that. “Possibly. But, I would never have gotten there before Supergirl arrived to take care of the problem. By the time I arrived, it would have been over.”

“But how did you know she would be there? Supergirl is only one person yet she is everywhere and anywhere.”

“Though not necessarily true” - James humored her - “Supergirl also isn’t human. She can fly. She has super-speed. I don’t have any of those capabilities and put up against her, I’m at a disadvantage. Guardian and Supergirl can never really be compared. Yes, they both are here to help but they have two entirely different ways to go about that. Supergirl is always at the ready. I, and Guardian, know you would never miss something unless something had gone amiss with you. I trust Supergirl.”

Kara smiled as she wrote. Trust was one of the things they had talked about in the garage and they were working toward it again. “It’s inevitable that they will be compared though and you have to be ready for that. But why not fight with her, side by side?”

James studied her. “Would you really want that?”

“I’m not Supergirl right now. I’m just a reporter asking the questions I have to for the article.” She dodged the question and James let her.

“The attack this morning was alien. Yes, Guardian has been involved in alien fights before but who better than an alien to fight an alien.”

“So, Guardian is picking and choosing what he wants to do? That seems unfair,” Kara goaded.

“It’s not so much as picking and choosing but knowing when help is needed. I know you don’t want this to go personal but do you really think it’s a smart tactic to run into a fight knowing you could lose when there are other options. If Supergirl wasn’t around, Guardian would have been there.”

“That sounds like picking and choosing to me. You’re relying on Supergirl to do the jobs you don’t want to do.”

James shook his head. “It’s not like that. But again, I’m not super. I’m just a human who wants to help protect people. Guardian is much more suited for everyday crime. You know, thieves for example. Human against human.”

Kara nodded. James pushed. “You never answered my question before.”

Kara slowly looked up at him. “I don’t think you’d want to hear my answer.”

“That was answer enough, I suppose.” James started to get up, obviously hurt but Kara stopped him.

“It wasn’t an outright ‘no’. It’s not black and white. There are a lot of people I fight beside so you shouldn’t be any different. Yet, you also aren’t trained for this. You’re a vigilante who took it upon himself. Your whole operation is kinda flimsy. Winn and Lyra are too busy making out to be paying attention to if you’re okay or not. That’s dangerous. So I only see that: the danger you’re in.”

James stood up a little straighter. “Thank you for being honest.”

“Isn’t that what we’re doing? Trying to trust each other?”

A hesitant smile broke out on James’ face. “But if I’m there to help, you’d be okay with that?”

Kara shrugged. “Everyone can use backup.”

James chuckled quietly. Kara put a hand on his arm. “And I know I can’t stop you. And I’m starting to realize this is how you felt when I first became Supergirl but you believed in me and I need to do that with you even if it’s harder.”

“Why would that be?”

“You’re human. You can break a lot easier than I can. And you’re my friend and I care about you so I always want to keep you safe.”

“Your sister is a special agent.”

“Yeah and I work with her. I have to see her put herself in danger every day and it tears my heart to pieces. I had to find out that she had been lying to me about what she was doing just so I wouldn’t overreact. I’ve seen her take care of herself though. That doesn’t mean I don’t want to rush to her aid any chance I can. Seeing Alex hurt makes me so angry,” Kara explained. “But the mission always comes first. With you though, there isn’t a mission. You don’t have the full force of the DEO behind you or years and years of training. You just go in. You’re still considered a civilian. I would be forced to save you in any situation. You wouldn’t like that and it would take away from the focus of whatever situation was going on. And maybe it’s selfish but I don’t want that constantly on my mind when I’m trying to stay alive myself. I don’t deal well when the people I love are put in harm’s way. I just want everyone to be safe.”

“We all want you to be safe but we can’t control you,” James stated.

“I know I did that before. But that’s what I’m trying to tell you. I’m sorry. I know I can’t control what you want to do with your life. But you asked a question and that’s the only answer I have for you.”

“Maybe one day.”

“Maybe,” she admitted, hoping that it could be true.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, it's coming in late today, guys. But here's the next chapter!

Lena was rolling out of Kara’s bed, stretching, when Kara’s eyes found the fingertip-sized black and blue marks on Lena’s hips. The sight of bruises on Lena’s skin that Kara instantly knew had been her doing made her throat dry. “I hurt you.” 

Lena looked at her with eyebrows raised and followed Kara’s eyes to the marks. “No, Kara, do-”

“Don’t tell me I didn’t when I can see it right there. This is what I was worried about. I didn’t want this.” The last thing she had ever wanted to do was forget her own strength and hurt Lena. She had had a right to be worried because she was staring at the result of her lack of attention.

“Kara, it's not your fault.”

“How is it not my fault?” her voice had risen higher. “I did that. My hands did that to you. We can’t do this.”

All the words Kara did not have a grasp on started rushing from her mouth, “I can’t ever touch you like this again. I won’t do it. I can’t do it. Did you not tell me about this after that time in your office?”

Lena climbed on the bed, clasping her hands around Kara’s wrists to calm her. “Kara, look at me.” 

She wouldn’t listen. “I lost control. Last year. And it wasn’t my fault, it was red kryptonite, but…I did a lot of damage. It took over my mind. I couldn’t control myself. That’s everything you have ever been fearful of when it comes to aliens. The harm that could come to humans.”

“You would never do anything on purpose, Kara,” Lena said sincerely. Kara scoffed, not necessarily at Lena, just at the entire prospect.

“Of course not. This is my home. I only ever want to protect it. But…I threw Cat Grant off a building, Lena. I saved her but it was just to prove a point that I could. I said a lot of terrible things to a lot of people. And the DEO does have countermeasures now to…” she trailed off. She didn’t want to discuss that but by Lena’s face, she had understood. “And I hurt you without that influence.”

“This took a turn.” 

“I thought you should know.”

“Kara look at me.” She gave Lena her full attention even though all she wanted to do was continue apologizing. “I know you would never hurt me. This was an accident. I’m perfectly fine. Better than fine actually.”

Lena was trying to make a joke but Kara was in no mind to laugh. She scooted away from Lena on the bed. “That wasn’t an answer.”

“Kara, please. Don’t pull away. I want you to touch me. I’m not afraid of you. Don’t be afraid of yourself.”

Lena wrapped her arm around Kara, pulling her close. Kara rested her hand against Lena’s chest amazed at her compassion and forgiveness. “I’d like to think you’d have some temporary marks from me if you didn’t heal so fast.”

Kara had to chuckle at that and she felt Lena’s lips smile against her forehead as she was kissed.

 

The alien she had fought in Midtown Park was not the last of its kind to start trouble in National City. But she fought off each and every one without much difficulty. She landed in the DEO. “I have some questions.”

“So did we,” J’onn said, “but we found the answers. These aliens are from a race of alien bounty hunters called Amlax.”

Winn sat something small and red on the table. “We found this.”

He turned it on and a little image of Supergirl popped up and rotated. Kara pointed. “Hey, that’s me!”

Alex shot her a look and her smile disappeared. “What is that?”

“It’s an interplanetary messaging device. Play it, Agent Schott.”

A robotic voice sounded, giving information on Supergirl and offering a reward for her death. J’onn waited until it was done. “Someone put a bounty on your head. There’s going to be a lot coming after you now.”

Kara shrugged. “That’s fine. I’ve dealt with it up until now. One by one. 

“Okay, okay,” Alex started, “I have complete faith in you but we don’t really need fight after alien fight to rip up the city.”

“That sounds like you want me to do nothing.”

“That’s not really –“ Winn started. 

“It’s strategic,” J’onn interrupted.

“I’m the girl of steel. I don’t bend. I don’t break. I don’t stand down for anyone,” Kara said, exasperated that they even considered benching her. Maybe she had to step aside when Oliver Queen asked, but this was her team and they worked together.

“Give us one day,” J’onn compromised. Kara raised her eyebrows. “You get one day. And then I’m going to take down whatever aliens come for me.”

 

“Alex, I need a favor.” She found her older sister in the med rooms in the DEO, stitching up a fellow agent who had been injured in an alien fight. One that she had not been given permission to handle. She pointed. “I told you.”

Alex just sighed but it was obvious she understood this was not a favor for Supergirl. She patted the agent on the back. “Get some rest.”

He hopped off the table, saluted Supergirl and left the siblings to themselves. Kara shut the door behind him. “What is it, Kara?”

Usually Alex only referred to her as Supergirl when she wore the suit. “I need Kryptonite.”

“What?” Alex asked, her voice high.

“Just a little but I need it.”

“What for?” Nothing about the situation was something Kara really wanted to talk about with her sister. It made her uncomfortable just thinking about it but it was Lena and she had to try.

“It’s not something I really want to discuss,” the words were sheepish and she already knew Alex was going to refuse.

“Then I can’t authorize you to have it. J’onn would never sign off.”

“Oh, J’onn can never know about this.”

Alex eyed her suspiciously. “What in the world do you need this for?”

Kara shut her eyes so she would not have to see Alex when she explained. “Lena and I are at the point of our relationship, yes that point, and I can’t _not_ hurt her during…yeah. I need it so she’s safe.”

There was silence and Kara slowly opened one eye at a time. Alex was looking at her. There was a lack of expression. “I don’t know if that will work.”

“I have to try,” Kara almost begged.

“Okay.” Kara’s desperation must have won out. “I don’t know if we even have any stored, Superman took it all, but I’ll see what I can do.”

“Thank you.”

“I don’t like the idea of you hurting yourself in order to not hurt her,” Alex lectured.

“But you’ll do it?”

“I said I’d try.”

Kara was heading out later that evening after spending the entire day wallowing around the DEO, complaining that they weren’t putting her to use. She had to watch aliens wreck havoc while someone else took care of it. Alex cornered her in the hallway, pressing something cold into the palm of her hand. “It’s all I could swipe. And I can’t do it again. You don’t even know if it’ll work.”

Kara held onto the tiny tube of green liquid, the skin of her hand already tingling from the proximity.

 

While Lena was in the bathroom, Kara opened the canister that held the kryptonite and dropped the smaller vial inside of it into her hand. She held in the groan that came with the contact and immediately, her energy began to drain. She quickly placed it behind the frame on her bedside table and though she could still feel it, the pain was lessened.

Kara’s eyes blinked open and closed until she felt like she had to struggle to keep her eyes open, the lids falling down and obstructing her vision. But when Lena appeared in the doorway of the bathroom, she was all smiles and quickly embraced the woman in front of her. Lena kissed Kara slowly. Her hands found Lena’s waist and this time she was not afraid of leaving marks, as her fingers almost had no strength to hold on at all. Lena did not seem to notice and pushed Kara back onto the pillows, keeping their lips latched. Kara could feel Lena’s tongue poking at her lower lip and she acquiesced, holding Lena flat against her. Kara stroke her hand through Lena’s hair fighting against the kryptonite that was sapping her energy with each second.

Kara’s hand fell onto the bed, her vision becoming hazy. There was pressure on her stomach as Lena sat back in surprise. “Kara, what is going on?”

Kara shook her head, trying to rid it of the fog. “Nothing. Come here.”

She beckoned for Lena who hesitated but gave in to the request. She tried to make up for what she was lacking in the way she kissed Lena the second time around but there was so much to think about and she was getting confused. She felt like everything was going in slow motion and all she really wanted to do was close her eyes and go to sleep. This time, Lena sounded worried, “Kara, are you okay?”

With her strength draining even more quickly, the pain was starting to take over and the groans she had been able to stifle became vocalized. “Kara, what hurts?”

She grunted with the effort to speak, “Everything.”

Lena crawled off of her and knelt beside her, a hand on her face, her thumb rubbing Kara’s skin. “What can I do?”

Kara’s left arm stretched out towards the bedside table and Lena followed the motion, her hand searching on the table until Kara nodded. Lena reached behind the frame and she pulled out the vial that was glowing green, her eyes widening. “No, no, no, no, no.”

Lena enclosed the vial into its canister and jumped off the bed, rushing out of the room. Kara heard the balcony door open, a rush of air, and all of a sudden her head was clear. She sat up on her elbows on the bed shaking her head of the remaining haze when Lena re-entered the room, a glare that could kill on her face.

She started pacing at the end of the bed as Kara watched. “No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.”

Kara was not sure exactly what Lena was building up to but the constant mumbling repetition of “no” was certainly not an indicator of anything good. Finally, she stopped, her hands on her hips.

“What in the world were you thinking!?” Lena shouted, an action that wasn't normally directed at Kara.

“I-”

“You weren’t obviously” - Lena cut her off - “And you don’t have to explain what it’s for, either. But if you thought I would rather you use kryptonite than leave a bruise on me, you have greatly miscalculated who I am.”

“It was all I could think of to not hurt you. Because I’m not doing this” - she gestured between them - “knowing that I will end up hurting you. Those aren’t the marks I want to leave. It’s not going to happen.”

Lena’s shoulders dropped and she crawled back on the bed, looking Kara directly in the eyes. She pulled Kara up to hold her. “Then we won’t do it. And we’ll find a solution.”

“I don’t know if there is one and I can’t keep you tied up in something that’s not going to go anywhere.” The words were out of her mouth before Kara had a chance to think about it. When she heard them for herself she was surprised with how they sounded.

“Do not try to break up with me, Kara. I’m not in this to have sex with you. Is that a perk? Yes, definitely. But, that’s not the only reason I’m here” - Lena’s hand was stroking her hair - “Do I want to? Yes. But not like this. We’ll work through it together.”

Kara felt a warm kiss on her temple and decided that some people did not run at the first mistake. “You didn’t by any chance actually throw that off the balcony, right? Alex will kill me.”           

Lena pursed her lips. “I think I know better.”

 

“How’d it go?” Alex put her hand up immediately. “Not the details, I meant in general.”

“As well as anything that’s not thought through,” Kara admitted, handing the kryptonite back to her. “Lena wasn’t too happy when she found out.”

“Do not tell me you went ahead and told her!”

“When I almost passed out she kinda noticed.”

Alex shook her head. “I warned you. I knew this wasn’t a good idea but I let you do it anyway. I should’ve stopped you.”

“Alex, this isn’t your fault. I asked you for help and you gave it. It was a bad idea but I had to try something.”

Winn stuck his head through the door. “J’onn needs you guys out there.”

“Well, that’s over. You couldn’t get any more even if it had worked.” Alex passed her and exited the room. Kara knew Alex was adamant about it; her sister had been clear from the beginning. Even if Kryptonite was out of the picture, she had one more idea. She knew it was not smart but she would try anything for Lena.

Kara followed, finding everyone already gathered around, waiting on her. J’onn gestured to Mon-El. “I believe Mon-El has something he wants to say.”

He looked scared and hesitant to say anything but he had himself in a corner. “It was my parents. Well, at least my mother. I don’t think my father has any idea what is happening. My mother is the one who set the bounty on Supergirl.”

There was a communal intake of air but Alex was the first to question him. “I thought the Daxamites had left.”

“They’re back,” was all the explanation Mon-El had to offer.

J’onn nodded. “Now at least we know where the threat is coming from. It’ll be easier to fight off.”

“Well, I gave you a day so now I get to be involved.” Supergirl rested her fists on her hips, mirroring Alex on the opposite side of the table.

J’onn nodded in affirmation and Kara looked to Mon-El. “Bring me your mother.”

 

They agreed to the terms. Only Mon-El and Kara were to go. Kara had wanted to go by herself but Rhea would only meet if her son was there. Neutral ground. No backup. So, they didn’t agree to all of the terms. “If you think I’m going to let you go face this woman alone when you don’t have to, you’re crazy.”

So Alex and J’onn ended up accompanying Mon-El and Kara but staying out of sight. Their first thought was the Fortress of Solitude but giving the Daxamite queen access to the only place that held remnants of Krypton was blasphemous and Kara refuted that option. The DEO was next on the list but Rhea would never agree to that. There were too many people and too many weapons. There was an old DEO bunker near the desert base where Lucy worked that had been unused for quite some time. J’onn alerted Lucy to their presence but asked her not to intervene. She would keep an eye out anyway; it was Lucy Lane after all.

Rhea came down in a beam of light without her husband. Mon-El had been correct in saying his father had nothing to do with the bounty. It seemed that all she wanted was her son to come back to her. Kara didn’t think that was too much to request: a mother wanting her son back. But she also understood that Rhea wasn’t the greatest mother around and no matter how much she thought Mon-El would be better off returning to Daxam and his people, she couldn’t force him. He was trying to make a new life for himself on Earth. Was she really the person to force him to give that up? She would not and could not do that. Earth was her home and it should be able to be home to anyone who needed to seek refuge.

Rhea was not amused. “I can’t believe my son would have any interest in staying on Earth or concerning himself with a Kryptonian. And I don’t care for the reasons which you both have come up with for his disobedience.”

“My life is my own, mother. You have no control over what I choose to do.”

Rhea smiled like she had all the control. “You have no power to dictate the terms of our relationship. I am your mother and you will do what I say.”

Kara stepped toward Rhea, trying to reason with her, “But his life isn’t yours. 

It felt weird to be arguing for Mon-El after everything he had put her through and because she disagreed with his decision to not return to his family and planet. But it was his decision and Kara believed in choosing the life you want. His decision to stay on Earth was not hurting anyone. She just couldn’t figure out what was here for him that would make him want to stay.

He had never shown interest in anything. His bartending job surely wasn’t going to be something that lasted him for eternity. And other than that and casually working for the DEO, he didn’t have much going for him. Returning to Daxam seemed like a better idea. He could change how things were run. He could make it better for his people. Maybe he could prove he was the person he was always trying to make people think he was. But that wasn’t the choice he had made.

Kara had more to say to Rhea but there was a ringing in her ears and a sudden pressure in her head and she stumbled backward. “I don’t feel –“

She couldn’t catch her breath when Rhea ripped out a glowing green sais and slashed Kara across the face. She fell to the ground with a cry. Kryptonite. She had not been expecting that.

For what it was worth, Mon-El tried to disarm his mother but she was much stronger and threw him backward, slamming him into the wall of the bunker. Kara stood up, trying to ignore the pain and the feeling of the Kryptonite coursing through the veins in her cheek. She threw a punch but Rhea dodged, bringing the kryptonite sais to rest in Kara’s thigh. She cried out louder, the pain biting through her muscle. Her leg lost its strength and she collapsed.

Rhea lifted the knife above her head, going in for the strike to kill when Alex and J’onn burst into the room. Alex had her gun out and ready. “Oh, no you don’t.”

Rhea paused and looked at her son. “I’m surprised at you. Did you really bring all of the people you seemed to have taken to, here to die?”

“You will not kill them, mother.”

Rhea waved him off. “I have crossed oceans of sky to find you and if they choose to get in my way, then they will come to their end.”

Kara couldn’t move. She was paralyzed on the ground, her leg going numb. Green pulsed under her skin and she could only imagine her face looked the same. But Alex was ready as she always was for a fight. “You’ve overlooked one small thing.”

“And what is that?”

Alex smiled slyly. “You’re not impervious to lead.”

Rhea’s face flashed to fear as the gun clicked and bullet whizzed out of the barrel. She disappeared and the bullet pinged against the opposite wall. Alex groaned in frustration but ran to her sister, trying to pull her to her feet. Kara’s left leg still wasn’t working and the pain was only growing. J’onn growled, “We need to get her under the sun lamp. Now.”

He helped Alex shoulder her weight. She passed out somewhere along the trip back to National City.

 

“Kara!” She had been in and out of it for the whole flight back, the wind dragging her back to consciousness right before she fell back under. They had pulled the kryptonite knife out of her thigh but the effects were still hitting her hard. Her eyes opened at the sound of the voice. A hand was fluttering over her cheek, not touching down in case it would cause her more pain. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see that her veins were still glowing green.

Lena was entranced by that light until Kara whispered, “Hey.”

Lena sighed and smiled, relieved. And then she started fussing over Kara. Alex tried to pacify her. “She’ll be just fine. She just needs to go under the –“

There was a thud and all of a sudden Lena’s face grew taut and the look on her face could kill.

“You,” she accused, growling. She stomped forward. Kara could only hear what was going on but Lena’s heart was pounding too hard and another one was going faster than it should have. It wasn’t human.

“Woah, woah,” Mon-El defended. And then he grunted and Kara turned her head. Lena had him pressed up against the wall. He had to have been letting her. He may not have been as strong as Kara but he was stronger than a human.

She had her face right up to his and a finger jabbing into his chest. “This is all your fault. I’m sure you have nothing to say for yourself. If you weren’t so spineless and selfish, she wouldn’t be hurt. This is all on you.”

Alex had grabbed Lena, pulling her away from Mon-El. She was struggling against Alex’s grip, still yelling at him.

“You are not good. But she is. And she will always try to come to your aid.” Lena laughed. It was not a fun sound to hear; it was uninhibited and scary. “And if you dare ever take advantage of that good again, you will regret it very much. You do not deserve it.”

“Okay, Lena, come on.” Alex was dragging her away from an affronted Mon-El who stood frozen and shocked against the wall. Kara had been laid on a bed, which was rolling into the room with the sun lamp. Under the concentrated yellow sun rays she healed faster and she groaned as the kryptonite was forced from her skin. It wasn’t pleasant but the relief afterward was great. Lena had grabbed onto her hand, squeezing hard. Kara smiled as well as she could. “It wasn’t hi-“

Lena shook her head. “You do not have to defend him. You shouldn’t. But it’s not important right now.”

“How did you know?” Kara said groggily.

“Winn called me. I got here right before you guys got back.” Lena stroked her hand through Kara’s hair.

“But –“

“Ssssh,” Lena cooed. “You need to rest so you can heal. I’ll be here when you wake up.”


	16. Chapter 16

The sun lamp had revived her in one day and Lena had been there when she woke up, just like she had promised. Mon-El hadn’t shown his face at the DEO, or at least around Kara, since Lena had confronted him. But it had been a week and nothing from Rhea.

Nothing from Cadmus either. They had disappeared completely after Kara and Alex had ruined their plans to send the kidnapped aliens away from Earth. And the bounty on Supergirl’s life had apparently been called off as there were no random aliens trying to bring her down. They must have decided if they were not going to get paid for it, there was no reason to even try. None of them had even gotten close in the first place. 

Kara retrieved the piece of heatproof glass she had hidden in her closet; she had stolen it out of the DEO. She had waited a good amount of time to make sure she was fully healed and that nothing was going to come and surprise them. She wouldn’t be much help for a while after she did this.

Solar flaring was not comfortable; it was draining of her powers and her strength. It led to exhaustion and it hurt when it was over. Her eyes burned and her throat felt raw.

Kara felt useless without her powers but if it meant she could be with Lena without leaving marks, she would do it. It was the last thing she could think of to try.

She closed herself into her bathroom, stabilized herself and held the glass out in front of her. With a deep breath, she let go of the heat vision, the streams of light shooting from her eyes, crashing against the glass. She pushed harder and harder until she could feel the pressure in her head. She cried out, feeling her powers leave her. When the heat vision cut out, she fell to the floor, dropping the glass on the carpet, and breathing heavily. Kara pushed herself up to look in the mirror. The skin around her eyes was red. Bright red streaks that looked like blood made paths from her eyes down her cheeks. She wiped at the water that was building up; she was grateful for it as it remedied some of the burning. 

Kara downed a glass of water, hoping her yell was not so loud that her neighbors investigated. Foundation and concealer covered the horrifying sight of her reddened skin. It was ugly and scary. It would fade, even before she regained her powers, but it took time. When there was a knock at the door, it surprised Kara, who was used to hearing footsteps before the knock. She tossed the glass back into the closet and rushed to the door, sliding across the floor to open it.

Lena had her head slightly dipped on the other side. She smiled and held up a bag. “Your favorite.”

“Ooooh, potstickers!” Kara’s face lit up at the idea and she was briefly distracted from her original intentions. But as soon as they re-entered her mind, she forgot about the potstickers and pulled Lena through the door, shutting it and pushing her up against it. Lena dropped the bag to the floor and let out a surprised huff when she hit the door but Kara swallowed the sound as she pushed their lips together.

Kara grabbed onto Lena’s wrists and pushed Lena’s hands out of the way, holding them against the door. And she smiled, knowing that the grip was not strong enough to hurt Lena anymore. Lena smiled against Kara’s smile. “That was quite a welcome.”

Her heart was racing. Her voice was breathy and low and Kara wanted to hear more at the same time she wanted to cut Lena off with a kiss. She wanted to pick Lena up in her arms and carry her to her bedroom but she did not have the strength for it, especially not so soon after she depleted her powers. Instead, she wrapped Lena’s arms around her waist and backed up through the kitchen and living room, using her memory to guide them safely into the bedroom. It didn’t work.

She crashed into the counter and had to hold in a grimace as it bruised her back. Lena took the opportunity to reverse the roles and take control. She dropped her jacket on the chair next to them. Lena’s hands played with the edge of Kara’s shirt as Kara reached out to kiss her again. Lena acquiesced, her tongue running across Kara’s lower lip.

There was a chill to Lena’s fingers when they touched the skin of Kara’s hips and they were so light they tickled. Kara could not help the giggles that had her pulling away from Lena’s kiss. Lena looked at her with an eyebrow raised. “Something wrong?”

“It tickles.”

The revelation sent a wide smile across Lena’s face. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Don’t you dare even-” Lena captured her lips before she could finish. Her fingers moved from skin to the buttons on Kara’s shirt. She unbuttoned them with agonizing slowness but didn’t push the shirt off of Kara’s shoulders. Instead she wrapped her arms around Kara, underneath the fabric. Lena’s breath was warm in Kara’s ear.

“I don’t think I’m ever going to get used to these.” She poked at Kara’s abs.

Kara moved them again. They stumbled, falling into the wall outside of Kara’s room as she became more focused on unzipping Lena’s dress than where she was walking. Lena wiggled out of the tight fabric and let it drop to the ground. There was a mischievous grin on her face and Kara could not stop herself from ogling, knowing a blush was rising on her cheeks. She had seen this and more before but she was hit again by just how beautiful Lena was. She continuously questioned why Lena Luthor, billionare, CEO, would even look at her but with Lena here, ready for her, Kara decided she could mull that over at a later time. 

Lena took her hand and guided her into her own room. There was an extra sway to her hips and by the way she looked at Kara, it was entirely on purpose. Kara pushed Lena back onto the bed but Lena was one step ahead of her and Kara was pulled down on top, both of them laughing. Kara met Lena’s eyes and the laughter cut off immediately. Lena was biting her lips, her pupils dilated with desire. Her dark hair was laid around her head like sunbeams and before Kara knew it, Lena had taken hold of her waist and flipped them over.

Kara caught her breath when Lena’s lips attached to her throat. Fingers were fumbling with the button of her pants. Kara tilted her head to meet Lena’s eyes when she suddenly stopped. “Wait, Kara, I thought we weren’t going to –“

But then Lena froze, her eyes looking at something on Kara’s skin. Kara tried to see but whatever it was, it was on her neck, out of her view. Lena sat up, hands pressed against Kara’s stomach, staring. She lifted one hand to point. “What is that?”

“I can’t see anything, Lena.”

“It looks like a bruise.”

Kara chuckled. “Lena Luthor, did you give me a hickey?”

She tried to pull Lena back down into a kiss but Lena was not having it. She pushed Kara’s hands away and climbed off the bed. “I can’t give you a hickey.”

Kara sat up on her elbows. Without Lena, she became fully aware that her shirt was still unbuttoned and her pants had been roughly shoved down her hips. Lena, still in her underwear, was tearing apart Kara’s room. Picture frames toppled over, pillows were thrown on the floor, Kara was hit in the face with a shirt. “Where is it, Kara?” 

Her voice had lost any sense of the desire it showed before. She was not just Lena. She was in businesswoman mode; she was on a mission. When she got to the closet, Kara started to panic and slid herself to the end of the bed. “Come on, Lena, stop.”

She tried to use her super-speed to get in front of Lena before she realized she couldn’t for the time being. Kara knew exactly what Lena was asking for but she was trying to stall. “Lena, where is the what?”

“The kryptonite, Kara. I know you don’t think I’m stupid. Stop playing games. I thought we had come to an agreement last time but now –“

She paused, her hand groping under the pile of clothes that Kara had yet to wash. Kara fisted her hands, squeezing. She gasped when she felt her nails pierce the skin. It was very easy to forget she was not indestructible. Lena quickly turned at the sound, her eyebrows furrowed as she noticed the tiny bit of blood that was swelling under the skin of Kara’s palm. Kara was staring at it, fascinated that she could bleed.

Lena straightened up, holding a piece of glass in front of her. “I’ve seen this before. This is a Cadmus design. Just because it doesn’t have the helmet attached doesn’t mean I don’t know exactly what this is for.”

Kara couldn’t meet her eyes, which was answer enough. Lena dropped the glass onto the floor and sat on the edge of the bed. She wasn’t moving to get dressed or leave which Kara took as a good sign but she wasn’t smiling or speaking either. “Are you angry?”

“Yes, I’m angry!” Lena exclaimed. Kara hung her head. This was it. She always was the one that messed everything up. This was perfect and wonderful and she was never allowed to have anything like that in her life. Everything she had ever loved was burned to the ground. She had lost her family, her planet, her home. When she got to Earth, she tried to rebuild that with Alex and Eliza and Jeremiah. Then he was violently torn from their lives and she latched on to anyone who wanted to be around her. Winn and James and J’onn. She would add Cat Grant to the list but Cat had chosen to leave and Kara had yet to truly forgive her for that abrupt departure. And then Lena showed up and somehow Kara was losing hold and letting everything slip through her fingers. She grasped at loose threads of possible conversations, “If it helps, it wasn’t from Cadmus.”

“That doesn’t change it, Kara.” Lena rarely ever said her name so dryly and that dug into Kara even more.

Kara wrung her hands. “Do you hate me?” 

Lena snapped her head up, complete bewilderment etched on her face. “Hate you? Kara, I could never hate you. I love you” -there were three seconds of complete silence where Lena’s eyes grew wide and Kara felt her own do the same - “Shit. I – that was –“

And Kara stuttered out meaningless words over Lena, “It’s – I just – fine and -“

There must have been a full minute of both of them never completing a sentence, trying to move on from a revelation they were trying to pretend did not happen. The stuttering puttered out and the silence returned. And then Kara started to think about love. Love hurt. She had felt a hundred knives when her father died and another hundred for her mother. The day Astra was killed there were a hundred more. And when she found out that Alex had killed Astra, the knives were the only things she felt. Because she loved Alex and Alex had betrayed her.

She had loved Jeremiah but his death consumed her with grief like that of the rest of her family. She loved Alex and Eliza and it hurt how much she loved them. She had thought that was it but somehow her friends had wormed their way into her life. That was already too much; there wasn’t room for more. Because Kara had watched an entire planet she loved die. Millions of her people were consumed by the flames until she was all that was left. She watched her home, her world die and that was when the knives had twisted and turned, carving out her insides until she was empty because she was alone. Everything and everyone she had ever loved abandoned her. And if Lena was becoming her world, then she couldn’t love her because there wasn’t space for even one more knife. One more crack in her foundation would be the end of her. 

When they both were out of pointless words, Lena looked at Kara for a second before deciding to leave the room. She grabbed a discarded shirt off the floor before she went. Kara stood, staring around her room that had become a disaster zone in the wake of Lena’s rampage. She took her time buttoning both her pants and her shirt because looking Lena in the eye was daunting.

When she finally built up the courage to journey out of her bedroom, she found Lena sitting with the box of potstickers opened on the counter. She wasn’t eating them. She was drinking a glass of maroon liquid that Kara recognized as the bottle of wine she had been keeping. She would never drink it so at least it was being put to use. She did notice that there was a second glass on the counter. Lena must have poured two just to be polite.

Kara had stopped right at the edge of the kitchen, wanting to give Lena space if that’s what she wanted but Lena had a soft smile on her face when she noticed Kara and patted the stool beside her. Kara hopped up onto it and stuffed a potsticker into her mouth. She swallowed before she had chewed enough and the wine helped. She could see Lena staring at her out of the corner of her eye. “I just wanted to try.”

Lena drained her glass. “I guess it’s a compliment that you want me that much” – she went from teasing to serious in less than a second – “but I can’t condone it. I don’t want it like that and you don’t really want to have to do that.”

Lena turned to look at Kara. She was completely serious as if all the knowledge in the world was held in her hand and all that she spoke was truth. “You can’t forgo part of yourself. You should be able to be entirely you. I want you to be entirely you. I don’t just want part of it.”

Kara sighed. “But this isn’t me. I mean, yeah I’m Supergirl and I have these amazing powers but I’m not human. I shouldn’t be on this Earth and if I wasn’t, if I was home on Krypton, I wouldn’t have these abilities.”

Lena’s head fell to the side, briefly in thought, but responded, “But you do. They are a part of you. They are a huge part of you, Kara. You love being Supergirl and being the hero of National City. You love helping people. Just because in another life, this may not have been your destiny, this is exactly who you are now. I know you know that. I need you to stop making excuses.”

Kara did love being Supergirl. She felt like it made her whole. She wasn’t human and that set her apart from everyone else on Earth. They couldn’t connect with her. They didn’t understand. But when she was Supergirl, they didn’t care about whether she was human or alien. They didn’t care if she was Kara Danvers or Kara Zor-El. They just cared that she was there, working to keep the peace. And even though Supergirl took all of her energy and sometimes made her wish she could be entirely average, she wouldn’t give it up. She could never look away from protecting the city she loved. Because if she did that, Earth could end up like Krypton.

“Sometimes I wish I had met you on Krypton,” Kara confessed. “I’m not sure anything would have come of this there to be perfectly honest but it would have been where I belong. I would’ve just been Kryptonian. Nothing special. Just me.”

Lena was looking up through her eyelashes at Kara, an adoring smile on her face. “You, Kara Danvers, are nothing but special.”

“It’s Zor-El,” Kara said.

Lena cocked her head and pursed her lips. “What?”

“My name. It’s Kara Zor-El.” Lena didn’t respond so Kara went on in her usual rambling way, trying to fill the silence. “I just thought – well, maybe it’s time you knew. I know it seems like another secret I was keeping from you. It wasn’t! I promise. It just never really came up and no one ever refers to me by that name anyway. The people who know who I am know, but they’re not used to it. Uh – so yeah. Um…on Krypton daughters take their father’s name as their last name. Zor-El was my father so yeah, Kara Zor-El.”

She had run out of things to say but Lena had not tried to interrupt her. Instead, she was smiling. “I’m done.”

Lena chuckled. “You don’t have to be. I want to hear it all. I want to know everything, Kara Zor-El.”

Kara looked into her lap, shyly. She didn’t realize how happy it would make her to hear herself referred to as that from someone other than an alien she was fighting. She also hadn’t realized how strange it would feel, a good strange; she herself wasn’t used to it. “Is this going to be a thing now?”

Lena sat back and nodded her head seriously. “Oh, it is definitely going to be a thing now.”

Lena went to pour more wine but Kara pushed her glass over. “You can have this one."

Lena sat back down, nodding. “Sometimes I forget that. I grew up in a family where everyone always had a glass of something in their hand. It’s my norm.”

Kara shrugged. “I think you could give Alex a run for her money.”

“Your sister? The special agent? She drinks? Shocker,” Lena said with faux surprise. Lena had seen her drink before but that was tame Alex Danvers.

There was comfortable silence for a few moments. Kara didn’t feel the urge to break it. Lena sipped a little but she looked like she was thinking, her mind racing toward a question. She turned her head toward Kara. “What did you mean when you said nothing would have come of this on Krypton?”

Kara furrowed her eyebrows, figuring out the best way to explain. Her own thoughts were conflicted on the matter, whether it was right and wrong wasn’t clear anymore. “Well, Krypton was a caste-based society. It was also very technologically advanced. Very scientifically inclined.”

Lena was nodding. “I know. I learned that much from, uh, from Lex. Sorry, continue.”

“It wasn’t like Earth. Everyone was matched. You didn’t choose your own mate. It was based on a lot of criteria. It was a very logical system to produce the best results. People were paired together if they would work well to further the future of Krypton. It was all about advancement” - Kara laughed nervously - “It doesn’t translate perfectly to this situation but on Krypton, a CEO and an amateur journalist would never have been paired together. But the House of El was very highly esteemed and I would not have been a journalist on Krypton, so I might have been thought worthy of you then. Of course, that would have depended on where your family sat in the hierarchy of things. It’s not probable though.”

“Is that what you think though?” Lena asked.

Kara stuck another potsticker in her mouth. “About what?”

“That you’re not worthy of me?” She said it like the words tasted bad. Kara shrugged.

“I sometimes wonder why you ever gave me a second glance. I trailed into your office behind Clark Kent that first day. You didn’t know anything about me and yet you thought I’d become a good reporter. Kal mentioned it…along with other things.” She rolled her eyes.

“I will be hearing those other things, eventually,” Lena promised. “But you really don’t know how you look to other people, do you?”

Kara shrugged again. “I’ve always had to hide. So, that’s what I try to do. If they don’t see me, then I’m safe.”

Lena smiled. “You’re too cute for your own good. Everyone sees you, Kara. They can’t miss you. When I heard you worked at CatCo and had just been Cat Grant’s assistant, I was surprised. I thought that was no place for you.”

“You didn’t even know me.”

Lena took ahold of her hands. “That’s my point, Kara. You have an energy about you that is so different from anyone else.”

When she saw the face Kara was making she shook her head. “And no, I don’t think it’s something to do with being Kryptonian. You’re bubbly. You’re so smart. Smarter than you let on, I’m sure. You’re inquisitive beyond what’s healthy. You don’t take no for an answer. You do what is expected of you and more.”

Kara was becoming impatient. “But you didn’t know that then.”

“Why do you think Winn liked you? Why do you think James Olsen liked you? Why do you think Mon-El liked you?” Kara spluttered for words but she didn’t have any. She was very uncomfortable talking about her past relationships and the one that didn’t quite happen, especially with Lena. Winn and James were her friends now, all of that was in the past. Lena was looking her in the eyes. “Why do you think Cat Grant took you under her wing? That woman is a powerful media figurehead. She’s ruthless. She knows how to run a business. And she gave you the time of day. She took you on and taught you like an apprentice and now you are a journalist. Cat Grant doesn’t do that for anyone. She saw the same thing everyone else sees in you.”

Kara didn’t know how to respond. No one had ever talked about her like that before. Like she was the one who made things happen and that they didn’t happen to her. Lena squeezed her hand. “You know what I think?”

Kara shook her head because she had thought Lena had just told her everything. She almost shuddered knowing people looked at her and thought of her so intently and with such purpose. That wasn’t supposed to happen to Kara Danvers.

“I think that you have four different people inside there.” Lena poked her chest. “There’s Supergirl: the most obvious alter ego of them all. The confident, brave, ass-kicking woman. The hero of National City. Then there’s Kara Danvers: the bubbly, nerdy, awkward woman who worked her way up the media ladder to the find the job she loves. Then there’s Kara Zor-El: the woman I just met today. Who lives with the knowledge of whole other world. Who knows of things that most people could never imagine. Who holds so much pain inside of her.” 

Lena sighed deeply. “And then there’s just you. A mix of all three. A woman who has been through so much and has found a way to continue to go on. A woman who knows the importance of keeping family close. A woman who would do anything for her friends. A woman who cares so deeply that she can rip down even the highest and thickest walls. A woman who knows the significance of love.”    

Lena nodded and smiled. “A woman who can eat tens and tens of potstickers and not be sick.”

Kara didn’t smile or laugh. She just stared at Lena, looking in the eyes that shone green. None of the thoughts in her head made sense since moving to Earth, since becoming Supergirl, but they had finally been given words. In order to keep her secret, and her sanity, she had kept them all separate. They were entirely different entities from one another. She didn’t realize she was speaking aloud, “That’s why it doesn’t feel whole.”

“What?”

Kara snapped out of it. She was staring at nothing and her vision had blurred. “How did you do that?”

“I’ve spent my entire life being silent and watching and listening,” Lena responded. Kara grabbed her face, rougher than she intended and kissed her long and hard. Lena pulled back. “What was that for?”

“You just did something I can’t even do” - Kara’s head shook with disbelief - “You see me. You see me as a whole.”

“That’s how you are with me. I’m just telling you what I see,” Lena stated as if was perfectly normal that she had just changed every single way Kara had ever thought about herself. Lena leaned in but didn’t kiss her. The movement was just to get close. “But now you have to promise me that you will never do anything to hurt yourself again to save me. Promise me that, Kara.”

“I won’t promise that,” she said. There was nothing she wouldn’t do if Lena was put in harm’s way. “I can’t promise that.”

Kara knew what Lena had really meant though, so she tried to make it into a joke. “I am Supergirl, you know.”

“Kara, I swear, I thought we were going to have a fight. Don’t do that. You know what I mean,” Lena scolded.

Kara laughed. “I promise that I will do nothing to hurt myself in order to keep you safe, when we…when we…”

“Have sex, Kara. You can say the word. Seeeeeexxxxx.” Lena drew it out and Kara felt herself get hot.

Kara waved her hands. “Fine. When we have sex. But that means we won’t. Because I won’t hurt you for that.” 

“Good. Thank you. That’s all I’ve wanted since the kryptonite debacle. I wasn’t lying. I’m not in this for that.” Lena kissed her.   

“It’s so much more than that.” Lena kissed her between each word and then stopped and looked up at her. “I could do that all day long.”

Kara’s phone dinged and Lena groaned as Kara picked it up to look. “I was really hoping we would be able to do that all day.”

Kara set the phone down, looking shyly at Lena and clenching her teeth together.

“Well, we probably can.”

“What?” Lena asked surprised. Kara couldn’t blame her. Usually, her phone going off meant there was some Snapper emergency or DEO emergency.

“That was Alex -”

“Then you should go,” Lena urged. “The city awaits.”

“Well, you see, um, I wouldn’t be much help. I can’t fly right now and I’m also not bulletproof. Even if they try to recharge my cells, it doesn’t always work in this situation, and it’ll be too late. They’ll have already figured it out without my help.”

“Are you saying that you-”

“Yeah, Alex and Hank are gonna kill me,” Kara admitted. “And they actually could right now."

Lena turned away from her for a second in silence. “I know I should be a little more frustrated about this. Because you are Supergirl and you have a job. But, I get to do this.”

Lena’s force knocked Kara from her chair. Fortunately, she was sitting on it sideways so she hit the counter. It hurt but Lena was biting her lip and it didn’t really matter. Kara’s hands had floated down Lena’s back. The shirt she was wearing inched up above her underwear; that’s where Kara chose to keep her hands. Lena’s hands were on the countertop, her full weight pressing into Kara as she kissed her. Her lips moved slowly from Kara’s mouth down to her neck. Kara gulped. “I really wish I wasn't stuck on the ‘we can’t do this right now’ thing.” 

Lena’s lips stopped for a split second and she breathed out, “Me too.”

 

She wasn’t sure how long she had been pacing in front of the door.

“Supergirl?”

She immediately turned around, holding her face in her hand and scrunching up her face. “Yeah?”

It was Alex, dressed head to toe in her black DEO uniform. Kara hadn’t expected to be caught. She hadn’t planned what to say if she was but then again she didn’t really know what she was trying to do.

“What are you doing?”

“Um.” Kara glanced at the passcode locked door, holding onto her cape just to have something to do with her hands. Her chin trembled as she looked back at Alex. “I don’t know.”

Alex’s shoulders relaxed. “Kara.”

Only a couple tears fell. Her sister always seemed to know exactly what was going on before Kara herself did. She swallowed hard. “Um, I haven’t been in there since -”

“Yeah, I know,” Alex interrupted and Kara was grateful. She nodded.

They were standing across the hallway from one another. Alex hadn’t come any closer, giving her space; Kara took it willingly. She swooshed her cape around a little, not necessarily knowing how to go on or if she even wanted to. Alex let the silence hang for a little bit but then broke it, “So why now?”

“I haven’t gone in.” Kara didn’t answer the question and pointed erratically at the door. “I know what she’s going to say.”

Alex nodded, a sad side-smile appearing on her face. “Why?”

Kara stared at her sister for a second. Even though Alex already knew, they hadn’t talked about it much and Alex had been pretty neutral with her reaction. “I want to tell her about Lena…well, not _her_ exactly but...”

She trailed off because Alex hugged her. “Because I’m just really happy and I want her to be happy for me. But she can’t be” - Kara's voice cracked - “so I don’t know if it’ll be a relief or if it’ll hurt.”

Alex squeezed her. “She doesn’t understand how to feel, Kara. She’s not really there.”

Kara huffed out a laugh to stop herself from crying and detached herself from Alex. “That’s why I haven’t gone in.”

Kara fell against the wall, letting her head drop back. “I know she hasn’t made the best decisions but she was my mom, Alex. I was supposed to be able to share this with her and I’m so frustrated.”

Kara’s fists slammed against the wall leaving two dents. She had surprised herself and instantly jumped. She was horrified. The last time she had damaged anything in the DEO like that was when her frustration with Cadmus took control. Kara looked at Alex frantically. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean – I wasn’t thinking and I just…I’m sorry.”

Alex shrugged. “We haven’t Kryptonian-proofed the walls.”

“What do I do?” Kara begged.

“You know that if I could fix this for you, I would. I would bring her back in a second.” Alex was completely serious. “But I can’t do that. And that’s not her. And I can’t make this decision for you” - she paused - “But you already knew that.”

Kara turned, leaning her forehead against the wall and closing her eyes. She had the urge to punch it again but she held back. Her fists were clenched unbelievably tight on either side of her head. 

But in the end, she turned away from the door, took a deep breath and walked away.


	17. Chapter 17

“KARA I WISH YOU HAD A MIDDLE NAME DANVERS!” Kara froze in the middle of the DEO. Everyone else turned to look at the commotion. She slowly turned around to see a furious Lucy Lane, standing at the top of the stairs with hands on her hips. Kara always found it encouraging seeing Lucy and her sister in that stance. To most it had become synonymous with Supergirl but Alex was the one she took it from and Kara didn’t wear it with nearly the same amount of confidence.

Lucy’s lips were a thin line as she charged down the stairs toward Kara. She slapped her, hard, on the arm. “Ah, Lucy, what in the –“

Lucy took off her riding gloves and used them to pummel Kara who tried to shield herself from the onslaught. No one was interfering. Kara was Supergirl so it wasn’t necessary. And Lucy was boss adjacent so they were going to do nothing to piss her off anymore than she already seemed.

“Lucy! Lucy, stop!” Kara finally got a hold of Lucy’s wrists to stop the assault.

Lucy was in a stance of aggression, heaving furiously, with a look that could kill on her face. She scowled. “I didn’t think that missing game night meant the Danvers sisters would stop telling me things. Both of you have a lot of explaining to do. Where is Alex?”

“I don’t know,” Kara answered honestly, racking her brain for why Lucy was so upset.

“Fine, you get it first then. LENA LUTHOR? You are dating someone and I had to find out from a gossip magazine in a store earlier? Are you kidding me!?” Lucy threw her hands up.

Kara shrunk from her gaze, pure apology written on her face. “Yeah.”

“Ooooh, boy. Talk.” Lucy whacked her again.

“About what? You know now.”

“I’m watching you, Kara Danvers,” Lucy warned.

Kara’s shoulders fell. “Lucy, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. There’s been a lot going on and we haven’t talked much.”

“How long?”

“How long have we been dating?” Kara clarified.

Lucy rolled her eyes. “No, how long has – yes, how long have you been dating?”

“A few months, I guess. After her mother broke her out of prison.”

Lucy’s eyebrow raised. “You saved the girl and then got the girl. Way to go, Kara.”

Kara’s cheeks heated. “It wasn’t really like that exactly, but sure.”

Lucy was smiling now, apparently already forgiven Kara. “I’m actually surprised you didn’t know before. There have been a lot of rumors about it.”

“I don’t waste my time with the gossip columns, Kara. It was a fluke I saw it.” Lucy slapped her on the back. “Damn. You snagged one hell of a woman.”

“You talk as if you know her.” Kara laughed hesitantly, not sure if Lucy was an acquaintance of Lena’s or not.

Lucy's lips turned down just the slightest. “Genius, billionaire, running a company. It’s not hard to see.”

Kara chewed her lip. “So, the fact that she’s a Luthor doesn’t bother you?”

“It doesn’t bother you that I’m a Lane, does it?” Kara shook her head. “Then that should answer your question. My father and I don’t agree on most things as you’ve seen. Lena obviously doesn’t agree with her family either. You need to introduce us. We could start a club.”

Lucy looked around. “Now I really need to find your sister.”

“She’s around here somewhere.” Kara waved her hand around. She had just arrived and had yet to see Alex.

“I’ll see you later, Kara.”

Lucy started walking away, mumbling under breath, “Both of the Danvers sisters hooked badass women. Who’d have ever thunk it?”

Kara smiled proudly at Lucy’s quick acceptance.

 

“What are you all smiles about?” Kara asked Lena when she came to the apartment after work. At this point, she mostly lived there. She still had her own apartment but there was no need for it anymore. Kara’s place was much homier and they both enjoyed it more than Lena’s. Lena had told her it was never meant to be a home; she had never put anything into it to make it one.

Lena’s eyes widened. “Oh, it’s top secret.”

Kara hopped up from the couch, taking Lena by the waist and pulling her close. “Intriguing.”

Lena chuckled. “This is not going to work on me, Miss Danvers.”

“You sure?” Kara said, wrapping her arms around Lena.

“As soon as I’m allowed to say anything, you will get an exclusive,” Lena promised and Kara huffed.

“But, what about just Kara your girlfriend. Does she get to know anything?”

Kara put on her best smile and nudged her glasses up her nose. Lena took a silent breath, her mouth open as if she couldn’t believe Kara would use such a move on her. “I’m working with a new partner.”

“Oh,” Kara said with genuine interest, “Anyone I know?”

“Are you fishing?” Lena cocked her head to the side.

Kara shook her head. “Of course not.”

“Well, it’s not anyone I know either. It’s an anonymous partner.”

Kara took a step back, worry flooding her body. “You don’t know who you’re working for?”

“More like with,” Lena said, taking the time to set her stuff down. “I know how it sounds but it’s just like having an anonymous donor. They are just more involved this time.”

“Lena, that’s dangerous.”

Lena took a deep breath. “See, I weighed whether or not I should tell you but Kara, you have to trust me. It’s an amazing project. It could do so much good. We could end poverty, reverse climate change. The possibilities are endless if it comes to fruition.”

Kara was still nervous, especially when there were people after Lena. But the look on Lena’s face was something she couldn’t ignore. She looked and sounded so happy; she often wasn’t when she talked of work. Lena missed being in the labs since becoming CEO. She wanted to be more hands-on and it sounded like she would be for this project. But that didn’t mean Kara was not completely skeptical of the situation.

Be supportive, that is what she had to remember. “Just be careful, okay? Because people have tried to kill you multiple times since we’ve met and you always run head first into the danger.”

Lena smiled kindly. “Look who’s talking. You were recently hurt badly.”

“But” - Kara stuck her finger out - “I survived.”

Lena pursed her lips. Kara reached out, rubbing Lena’s arms. “I do trust you, you know? I always have. But this seems sketchy to me. All I’m asking is that you are careful. No more falling off of balconies.”

Lena laughed then. “I was thrown but sure.”

“Well, no more of that either,” Kara commanded. Lena took a few seconds and pretended to be very serious and Kara couldn’t help but smile at the sparkle in Lena’s eyes. “Tell me about this project already.”

Lena thought in silence for a moment, “What do you know about quantum entanglement? Polyatomic anions?”

Kara groaned, frustrated. “Probably more than I even know that I know."

Lena’s face bunched up in confusion and she stared at Kara. She opened her mouth but paused. “What does that even mean?”

Kara huffed and slouched away, falling onto the couch and hugging a pillow to her chest. “When the Danvers put me in school and I saw that science was a subject I was so excited. But then I got into the class and I didn’t know anything. I couldn’t understand it. There were different words for everything and it didn’t make any sense. I should have known it. It should have been easy.”

“Not every subject can stick with everyone. Maybe it just wasn’t for you,” Lena shrugged, sitting on the opposite end of the couch.

Kara pulled her feet up onto the couch, shaking her head. “No. I love science. My father was a scientist.”

Kara cut herself off. If Alex were there she would’ve pointed out the deep crinkle in her forehead. Lena rested her head on her hand. “You can tell me.”

“Before you knew I was Supergirl and I had told you that your mother was head of Cadmus, I also talked about the disillusionment we can have when it comes to our family. Well, I had just learned that my father was the one who had developed that virus. So now it seems strange to be proud of him but he taught me everything I know.”

Pity wasn’t the expression on Lena’s face. She knew all too well how Kara was feeling and pity would have just exacerbated the anger. Kara fiddled with her hands and then fixed her glasses; it was a habit she couldn’t break. “Before Kry- before my – before I was sent to Earth, I was supposed to be entering the science guild.”

Lena looked flabbergasted. “You were going to be a scientist.”

Kara brightened. “I was. And I was already really good, Lena. I was going to do so much for Krypton. So I thought I could also do so much for Earth but I couldn’t. It was all different. None of the words were the same. I couldn’t grasp the concepts. Some of them were simple enough but the rest were so foreign and I was already anxious and frustrated. Becoming a scientist here seemed like a very far stretch and so I just tried to forget about it. Think about other things.”

“You miss it though?” Kara nodded. “I can hear it in your voice. Have you ever tried again?”

“I just get angry,” Kara admitted. “Alex is a very science-oriented person and she tried to help me but nothing worked. And besides, I do really enjoy reporting and it works well with being Supergirl. It worked for Kal for so many years I just figured it would work for me. It seems like an old life now.”

Lena pulled her over and Kara went willingly. She snuggled her head against Lena’s chest and closed her eyes. “If you ever want to try again, I know a thing or two about science.”

Kara laughed. “Because you’re a genius.”

“You are too aren’t you, Kara Zor-El?”

Kara could feel a burst of adoration she didn’t know what to do with deep in her stomach at the sound of her name. Kara turned so she was looking up at Lena’s face. “I was.”

“You still are. Your knowledge is just about something not from this Earth. And as someone who has only ever lived on this planet, that is very impressive.” Kara reached up, pulling Lena’s head down to meet her lips. It wasn’t the most comfortable position but Lena made no complaints. 

Kara sighed, releasing Lena’s neck. “You’ve never talked about what made you choose science?”

Kara kicked her feet out to sit up. Lena ran a hand through her hair, figuring out where to start. “Lex, I think. He loved it so I loved it. That’s what I did when I was young. Anything that Lex loved was the greatest thing to ever exist.”

Her laughter was humorless. Kara took Lena’s hand, running her fingers along the lines on Lena’s palm. “But science quickly became my thing just as much as it was his. We bonded over it. We came up with theories and tested them. None of them really panned out but Lex’s eyes would shine whenever we got close.”

Lena was staring at the hand Kara was holding. “But it wasn’t just him. I loved it too. And as I’ve told you, when he went away to college is when he started having radical ideas that didn’t fit with what I wanted to accomplish. So, I chose to go to MIT. And he was angry. Angry that I didn’t follow him. I started to put space between us. I went from having a partner in the lab to doing everything solo. I stayed up for hours and hours working. I worked through the night a lot in college. I would just forget because I would be so engrossed. I loved everything about it.”

She finally smiled. “I graduated early. I was always ahead in school and so I never fit in with any of my peers. They didn’t appreciate a sixteen-year-old in third-year college courses. They definitely didn’t appreciate me being at the top of my class.”

“Except for one guy. I was nineteen at the time and Jack became the other presence in the lab at two am. We didn’t talk at first. Nods of acknowledgment. But we found common ground eventually in nanotechnology. After that, it seemed like the universe had thrown us together for a purpose. We became partners. We were a formidable team. When we left college we worked out of a garage. Our last project was going so well. We had had a breakthrough and were closing in.”

“What was it?”

“We were working on the cure for cancer.”

Kara gasped.

“We almost had it. We were partners for four years.”

Kara’s nose bunched up. “Wait…”

Lena nodded. “Right up until I left for National City. I left our last project behind. He chose not to come with me and we haven’t spoken since. He could have very well have done it by now.”

“Moving shouldn’t have made you cut each other off.”

Lena’s heart skipped. Her breath stuttered out strangely. Kara looked up at her. “We, uh, we weren’t just partners.”

Kara dropped Lena’s hand. “Oh.”

This was the first of any past relationships of Lena’s that Kara had heard of. She never actively thought of Lena with someone else when she was younger. Still, it should not have come as a shock, but it did. She was with him for four years. That’s a lot of time to give someone.

Kara had met Lena almost as soon as she had moved to National City and it was only a few months later that they had started dating. The fact they were still together had to count for something. But the little voice in the back of her head, that always reminded her that this could end at any second, that Lena could decide Kara wasn’t enough for her, spoke up again and planted the idea of being a rebound into her mind.

“So…you two were together then?“ Kara asked trying to keep her voice steady. She was not jealous of Jack or upset that Lena had found happiness before she met Kara. She was worried because of insecurities that she wished she could just beat down until they couldn’t bother her anymore.

“To be completely honest, it’s hard to say. We were never dating or at least we never said we were. But we weren’t just friends and lab partners either. We spent so much time together that lines blurred. We could go from being professional to being friendly to being something else in one day and there never seemed to be a dividing line.” Lena was gauging Kara’s reactions but Kara was just staring past her, focused on some inane spot on the wall. “It’s hard. No matter what we were, we were very, very close for four years and it ended suddenly. He was the best partner I ever had.” 

They both sat in silence. Lena didn’t seem to have anything else to add but Kara had questions zooming around her brain. She didn’t want to ask any of them and sound insecure or jealous or make Lena uncomfortable but she was squirming and that didn’t go unaccounted for by Lena. “Darling, you don’t seem alright?”

“I think I’m confused.” Her voice was quiet and unsure, also something Lena picked up on.

“About Jack?” Kara nodded, her fingers fidgeting in her lap.

Lena reached out and lifted her chin so that she would look her in the eye. “You have to ask, Kara. I can’t read your mind.”

“I just want to know what it was.”

“I don’t know what it was,” Lena admitted. “I think sometimes when you spend so much time with someone and you are so passionate about the same thing, things happen. Things develop that you don’t expect.”

“And,” - Kara swallowed - “did things develop?”

“Past partners? Yes, of course. First into friends. Jack became my best friend, my confidant. But past that as well,” Lena said still measuring Kara’s reactions. She was trying to listen but she had never felt the boiling heat in her stomach before this conversation so she didn’t know what to do with it. “I had been with a couple people casually before Jack. But they had all been women so just guess my surprise when all of a sudden I was interested in this man. He returned the feelings, that much was clear. One day we kissed. But there seemed to be this unspoken agreement that we were casual too. We were not dating anyone else but we were not dating each other either. Nothing in our relationship really changed other than that.”

“We were two people completely focused on our work. We didn’t go out. We were always together. That’s why I don’t really know what we were. I don’t know if my feelings for him were out of convenience or not. I wasn’t meeting any other people to know for sure. I just knew that Jack was there and would always be there. We were very much more interested in each other’s minds than anything else. I’ve never been able to know if my feelings were genuine or had occurred because of our situation but I did love him.”

Kara stood up and walked into the kitchen. Lena followed. “You’re upset.”

“I don’t know why though,” Kara said looking at the ground, anywhere but at Lena. She fiddled with the edge of her sweater.

“You have no need to be jealous, Kara.”

Kara shook her head vehemently. “No, it’s not jealousy. I definitely know what that feels like. I felt that when I saw James and Lucy together. I felt it when I saw Maggie and Alex together” – she finally looked up at Lena – “Why would I be jealous of him? You deserve so much and he was there then to make you happy. That’s all I want for you. For you to be happy and he gave you that.”

Lena stepped very close, resting her hands on Kara’s cheeks. “ _You_ make me happy.”

Looking at Lena in that moment, seeing the sincerity in her eyes, knowing she was telling the truth was when Kara recognized the roiling in her stomach. It was a revelation and she sighed out the answer, “I’m scared.”

“What are you scared of?”

“That you’ll realize what it really means to be with me, all of me, when you only signed up to be with Kara Danvers. That you’ll find someone like Jack again who…just that you will. That our values will clash and you’ll realize it’s not worth it. That you’ll realize I don’t make you happy anymore.” It was like she knew the words all along but they needed a reason to come out.

“Oh, Kara, I've told you this." Lena pulled her into a hug. Kara squeezed tight, trying to hold onto her so she would never go away. “You have absolutely nothing to be scared of.”

“How do you know?” A sniffle came out as she spoke but she refused to cry.

“Because I don’t want someone like Jack. I want you. I want all of you. Every single part of you. I want someone who values love and hope and goodness above everything else. And mostly because there has never been one day of my life where I have been happier than the days with you in it.”

Kara nuzzled into her neck. “I’m sorry.”

“If you think I’d never thought about the same exact things, you’d be wrong.”

Kara jumped back as if she had been shocked, her mouth hanging open. “You what?”

“You don’t think you’re the only one who has let their insecurities get the better of them have you?”

“But…what would – why – how could you ever think that?” There was nothing in Kara’s life that would ever make her choose something or someone rather than Lena. It had been that way from the start. Every time she saw Lena it was as if a bubble of happiness burst inside of her and she was filled with so much warmth that she felt like she could explode. She couldn’t imagine how she could think any differently.

“Where do I start? Three people you see on a regular basis have fallen in love with you. And one you even loved back. Now, one is an imbecile who I could not care less about but two of those three are your best friends that you see every single day. Do I like them? Yes. But that doesn’t mean I’ve never thought about what would happen if one day you looked at James and wanted to give it another shot.”

“And how could anyone be worthy of Supergirl? You’re a beacon of hope and light and me, of all people, should be worried that one day my faults would be too much for you to overlook. But I try not to think like that because every time I see you, you make me feel like I’m the only person in the world who matters. And selfishly, I don’t want to lose that. But more importantly, I don’t want to lose you. So, if I have to push past these feelings so I can have you, then that’s what I’ll always do.”

Kara stared at her completely honest and open confession. It was something Lena didn’t do very often. “I love James and Winn. They’re my friends and my family and they will always be in my heart. But I only want you. I can’t see anyone else but you.”

Lena’s smiled widely, the rare one where she showed startlingly white teeth. “You are too much sometimes, Kara Zor-El. But I wouldn’t want it any other way.”

Kara lifted Lena up onto the counter in one foul swoop, eliciting a small laugh before she swallowed the sound in a kiss. 


	18. Chapter 18

Lena and Kara were a storm. When they entered a room all manner and decorum were lost. Bodies froze and eyes stared. This was all new to Kara. Of course, for Supergirl, everyone stopped and gasped. But, that was Supergirl. Kara Danvers flitted under the radar of any attention. Cat Grant had been the first to take notice of her. Snapper Carr knew she existed but spent most of his time trying to forget that. She felt uneasy knowing she was being observed by a room full of elegant strangers.

For Lena, this was the norm. She was proud that she knew how to work a room. Her garment choices for the two of them were very directed. She wore a pristine, black suit with a crisp, white, satin shirt. Kara donned a long, slim, black dress that dipped to display her bare back. Kara had, at first, been nervous to wear it as it displayed the prominent muscles she usually kept covered. Lena assured her that everyone would be much too distracted to notice. Kara had acquiesced and Lena had almost made them late.

Lena tilted her head slightly toward Kara and whispered, “Aren’t you used to this?”

The tension in the arm Lena was holding queued her in to Kara’s unease. She almost imperceptibly shook her head. “Supergirl is. I’ve said before, it’s the suit.”

Lena wanted to laugh but settled for a smile. A man approached them. “ May I show you to your seats?”

They were seated at a round table near the stage that was filled except for their two seats. Kara and Lena were both briefly introduced to their fellow dinner mates; Kara nodded and smiled but names were already fleeting. “I know these events aren’t that much fun but I thank you for coming with me.”

“Of course I would come! And, you’re giving a speech. I wouldn’t want to miss that.” Waiters came around to set dishes in front of the patrons. The gala was a charity event for the children’s hospital; it was not an evening Lena could have skipped and having Kara by her side made it bearable. Kara immediately dug into the dinner; her surroundings did not hamper her incredible ability to consume food. She looked at Lena with her cheeks bulging. Kara swallowed. “What?”

Lena smiled and shook her head. “Nothing. But, I do want to apologize for putting you on the spot tonight."       

Kara waved her hand. “No, it’s fine! I understand you have to do it for press reasons and I’m sure most people know already.”

Kara knew she was right. Their picture had been plastered all over the news. People were very interested in Lena and whom she spent her time with. But, Lena had still asked for Kara’s permission to make an official statement. It ended up being something short and sweet that Lena had stuck into the intro of her speech for the evening. The paparazzi were childish, much different from the reporters Kara found herself surrounded by, but Kara dealt with it in stride.

Lena was introduced to speak.

“Good evening. It is wonderful to be here. L-Corp has started on a new journey and I have some thanks to give. First of all, I know many of you here have chosen to be supportive, not only to L-Corp but to this wonderful children’s hospital that the company has spear-headed. It has been a breath of fresh air. This gala was created for the purpose of bringing us together to give to a cause that does good.

“Also, I could not have done this all without the support of my love, my beautiful girlfriend, Kara Danvers. She has been a bright light since the start and I could not ask for a more gracious woman to be able to share with the world.”

There was a round of applause but that was all Lena mentioned about her; it was enough to get people gabbing. When they quieted down she continued on about the hospital and the great strides it was making in finding cures. 

Kara hadn’t known about the hospital’s existence until about a week before when Lena had mentioned the event. She talked about it with so much adoration and she talked about the kids with the same fondness. “You go visit them?”

“When I can.”

“Why have you never told me this before?”

Lena shrugged. “It just wasn’t something that came up.”

Kara choked. “Lena, I was reporting on the good things L-Corp was doing. This is pertinent to that.”

“Fine,” Lena said. “I wanted this to be off the radar. The kids deserve privacy and slapping the L-Corp symbol on it will just bring attention to it. Besides, this charity event will out it anyway but attention should be brought to it now. They’re doing amazing things and deserve more funding. L-Corp and I can only do so much. I am under the restriction of a budget.”

Kara was always in awe of how eloquently Lena could speak and the people in the room seemed ready to give what they could. She could tell from the look on Lena’s face that this was new. L-Corp was finally getting recognized for what it had become: a company working for a better future. There were still strides to make. It was still burdened with the Luthor name but Lena was determined and she wasn’t giving up. It helped that Supergirl gave her stamp of approval and had called Lena a friend.

After Lena’s speech a few people came up to her. Kara tried to shy away, stay in the background. This was Lena’s world and Kara didn’t know what to say or how to act. But, Lena pulled Kara to her side and wrapped an arm around her waist. Kara smiled as people introduced themselves to her. She was ready to be there for another hour or so but Lena rushed along every conversation, getting to the point and saying goodbye before the other party could ask any more questions.

When the line of people wanting to shake Lena’s hand diminished, she walked Kara toward the door. “You could have stayed. Those people really wanted to talk to you.”

“The problem is, I didn’t really want to talk to them.” She pulled Kara more securely to her side. “I texted David. He left the car parked in the garage. He’ll be around in a few minutes to drive us home.”

It was warm and Lena’s skin was cool. “I’m proud of you.”

Lena smiled over at her. “What for?”

“Your speech was amazing first of all,” Kara answered. “But you’ve changed minds. You’ve really changed L-Corp and it hasn’t even been a year yet. That’s something you should be proud of yourself for.”

“There’s still a lot more work to be done,” Lena said. She never let herself live in her accomplishments, even for a short time, because she was always looking ahead to the next step.

The car was on the first level, near the entrance and Kara spun around Lena, walking backward and tugging on Lena’s hips. “You need to give yourself more credit.”

Lena followed willingly, her eyebrows raised playfully with a small smirk on her lips. “Oh, do I now?”

She backed Kara up into the side of the car and Kara nodded. “Yes, you really d-“

Lena cut off the end of the word with a kiss and Kara laughed breathily against Lena’s lips, kissing her back. Lena’s hand was splayed wide against her bare back and she had a firm grip on Lena’s hips.

It didn’t last long. There was the sound of someone clearing their throat. Lena sighed and rested her forehead against Kara’s, her eyes shut as if she knew whom it was. Kara looked to the side. When she saw who it was, she immediately pushed herself away from the car to stand between Lena and the newcomers.

“Lena, Lena, Lena, my sweet girl,” Lillian said exasperatedly. Hank Henshaw stood beside her, silent but ready for any order she would give.

“Mother,” Lena greeted from her place halfway behind Kara.

“What are you doing here?” Kara growled, her fists clenching.

Lillian turned her focus to Kara. “I’m here to congratulate my daughter on her progress with the company.”

Lena let out a shallow laugh. “You have never shown care regarding my success before.”

Lillian smiled, her lips a thin line. “I also wanted to find out if the rumors were true and I’ve found my answer for that.”

She gestured between the two. “Oh, Lena, when I thought you would follow in Lex’s footsteps, this was not the relationship I had in mind.”

“What do you want, Lillian?” Kara warned through gritted teeth.

“It has nothing to do with you, Supergirl. Nothing at all.”

Kara had already known that Lillian knew her identity but she heard a small gasp behind her and Lena asking, “How did you know?”

“We had Jeremiah Danvers working for us. It wasn’t too hard to figure out,” Lillian said, knowing she was goading Kara. Kara was trying to keep it together but she had had no news of Jeremiah for months and Lillian had been out of the picture as well. She was ready for a fight.

Lena must have sensed something because she put her hand on Kara’s arm, squeezing gently, calming. The only thing it did was help Kara back to the reality that her number one priority in the situation was to protect Lena against any stunt her mother tried to pull.

“I was here to get your help, Lena.”

“And why,” Lena scoffed, “would I ever help you? Was throwing you in jail not hint enough?”

“Well” - Lillian spread her arms - “I see we are not welcome here. I only came to offer you a second chance in joining me but it looks like you are too far gone.”

She looked disgusted at the image of Lena with Kara. She started to leave but Kara stepped forward. “I can’t let you leave, Lillian.”

Lillian smiled menacingly. “Oh, you will let me leave, Supergirl. If you don’t I’ll have Mr. Henshaw put a bullet in her" - Lillian faked a pout - “And I know how sad that would be for you. So yes, you will be letting me leave. And no harm comes to Lena.”

“And why should I trust that you won’t send someone after us?” Kara demanded.

“I don’t actually want my daughter dead if I can help it,” Lillian explained.

“So the other attempts on my life were what? Faked?”

Lillian tilted her head. “Now, Lena, you understand that sometimes measures have to be taken and you were getting too close to things you were not supposed to know about.”

Kara glared at Lillian, watching her for any hint of some nefarious plan. But Lillian twirled on the spot. “We will be going now. I expect I’ll see one or both of you very soon."

The clicking of heels reverberated around the garage as Lillian and Hank disappeared inside a black van. Kara watched the entire time as they exited the parking deck to make sure they were gone for good before turning to Lena and taking hold of her hands. “Are you okay?”

“She loves dropping in like that to see if she can catch me off guard. I guess it finally worked.” Lena looked away from where the vehicle had disappeared and back to Kara. “Did you know she knew?”

“We knew about Cadmus before your mother took it over. Originally it was an organization associated with the government. They probably had access to DEO files at one point and she’s not wrong about Jeremiah” - Kara looked to her feet – “We still don’t know why he is working for them so it’s possible he could have also given them that information.”

Lena paused and then looked at the entrance again. “She’s never actually ordered a hit on me right in front of my face. I guess I still thought maybe she wasn’t giving those orders.”

“I wish I could tell you differently.”

Lena looked back at Kara. She tried to smile but it was forced and Kara rubbed a hand up and down her arm. She leaned over and left a kiss on Lena’s forehead. She could hear footsteps down the street. “David is almost here and then we can go home.”

“That sounds even better than before.”

The apartment was quiet and dark when they got back. Lena had been quiet the whole ride back and Kara had let her, just rubbing circles with her thumb against Lena’s hand. Kara pointed toward the bedroom. “Do you want to -?”

“I don’t think I could sleep right now,” Lena confessed.

The night had changed course very quickly and Kara wanted to try to change it back. Kara took Lena’s hand. “Come on then. We’ll change and watch a movie."

 

 **Sent (12:03am)** _Lillian showed her face tonight_

Kara stared at the screen, waiting for her sister’s response. It was brighter than she would have liked with Lena sleeping next to her.

 **Alex (12:04am)** _What?!_

 **Sent (12:04am)** _Everything’s fine, I just wanted you to know_

 **Alex (12:04am)** _What did she want?_

 **Sent (12:06am)** _Lena and she knows about us now_

 **Alex (12:06am)** _I guess we should have expected that. Your faces are plastered all over the place_

 **Alex (12:07am)** _Why didn’t you call back up? Or bring her in?_

 **Sent (12:08am)** _You wouldn’t have made it in time. And she had Henshaw with her and she threatened Lena’s life if I were to take any action_

 **Alex (12:09am)** _I suspect she disappeared back into the shadows again. We’ll be discussing this at the DEO tomorrow_

 **Alex (12:13am)** _I’m glad you’re safe_

 **Alex (12:13am)** _I’m glad Lena’s safe_

 **Alex (12:14am)** _I’m just glad you’re both safe_

Kara smiled down at her phone screen when Lena moved. Her arm was thrown over Kara’s torso and it tightened its grip. She let out a sigh. It looked like she was in a deep sleep but all of a sudden her eyes popped open. And then she grimaced and pushed herself away, flinging the covers off of her and escaping to the other side of the bed. “Kara, you’re like a space heater.”

Kara laughed and rolled over, pressing up against her and pulling Lena back into her. She peppered the back of Lena’s neck with kisses. “You love it.”

Lena swatted at her. “No. Now get off. I’m sweating.”

Kara held on tight and regulated a stream of cold breath onto the back of Lena’s neck. She shivered at the sensation. Lena’s voice was heavy with sleep. “You’re abusing your powers.”

“If it means I get to hold you, I’ll abuse them all I want.” Kara nuzzled her nose against the back of Lena’s neck.

It didn’t appease Lena for long before she was trying to separate them again but Kara wouldn’t have it.

The AC read “60” degrees in the morning.


	19. Chapter 19

Barry showing up in her bedroom when she was wrapped around Lena was not necessarily the way she would have chosen to wake up. A weird pulsing sound woke her and the blue portal that he had arrived in the last time was swirling above her bed. She instinctively knew if he landed, nothing good would come of it. As soon as she saw him appear she quickly carried him to the entrance of her room, placing him on the ground. Lena would not have been happy being squished awake by a strange man, even if it was Barry Allen.

They were both fully clothed…well, mostly. Lena usually slept in her underwear but they hadn’t been in a compromising position. That was still on hold for the time being.

She was weirdly holding Barry but her mind was still half-asleep and she was yawning. He placed his hands on her shoulders. “Kara?”

She blinked rapidly and released him.

“What are you doing here, Barry? Wait.” She stopped when she noticed Lena was still sleeping. She shushed him and motioned out of the bedroom. He was trying to look past her. The weirdest thing about their relationship was that Barry was one of her best friends but they never saw each other so they never were able to catch up. Things moved quickly in both of their lives and whenever they saw each other, they were almost entirely different people. They never saw each other grow but somehow they always fit.

He pointed, his face brightening. “Who is that?”

Kara rolled her eyes. “Why are you here, Barry? Do you need help?”

He shook his head. “Do not change the subject.”

She gave him a look and he gave in. “Don’t worry. It’s nothing time sensitive or life-threatening. We have time. We just wanted to get the gang back together. But more importantly, I want to know who that is.”

“Next time, don’t show up in my bedroom.”

He frowned. “You know I can’t help it.”      

“Tell Cisco to fix it.”

“Speaking of Cisco, I’m a little upset with you.” It was Kara’s turn to frown. “He gave you the” - Barry made a clicking motion with his finger -“and you haven’t visited.”

Kara walked away further into the kitchen and turned on the coffee pot. Lena would either want that or tea when she woke up, that much Kara had learned quickly. It didn’t take much to catch on. “Things have been rather busy around here.”

“I can see that,” Barry said, looking over his shoulder before sitting at the counter. 

Kara gestured to the pot. “Do you want anything?”

“No, thanks. So, who’s that?”

Kara rubbed the sleep from her eyes. “You mean the person you almost flattened because you can’t aim?”

“Good thing you’re here to save that from happening. It would’ve been really embarrassing actually so I’m really thankful you didn’t let that happen.”

“I like my girlfriend un-flattened, thank you very much.”

His mouth fell open. “Sara is gonna lose her mind.”

Kara blushed at the memory of Sara Lance’s repeated come ons that she had turned down. It never seemed to hinder the woman from trying and Kara had started to suspect it was more of a game than an actual want to hit on Kara. “You don’t have to tell her.”

“I wasn’t gonna say anything to Sara. I just figured it would eventually come up when she inevitably tried to trick you into kissing her.”

Kara threw her hands up in the air. “Okay, so it wasn’t just me! She was totally hitting on me!”

Kara’s voice was loud and she instantly regretted it when she heard the rustling sheets from her bedroom. Barry picked up on her mood. “What?”

She pointed to the right and held the stance until a messy-haired woman with disheveled clothing entered the kitchen with eyes still half-closed. She reached up, running a hand through her hair and her sleep shirt inched up, revealing her underwear and a couple inches of her stomach. Barry, appropriately, diverted his eyes while Kara found adoration slipping onto her face. This was only one version of Lena that Kara loved seeing and it always filled her with warmth. A woman without responsibilities. Without the weight of her family’s name on her shoulders. In the morning before she remembered all of her obligations and duties. “Darling?”

Kara felt the warmth spread through her belly. Lena called her that often but her reaction was the same every time. It was endearing and still so entirely Lena that should could not help but love hearing it. Kara walked to her, “C’mere,” and pulled her into a hug. Lena nuzzled into her neck and sighed into the embrace. Kara kissed the top of her head. Her voice was raspy and muffled from the morning and Kara’s shirt. “Were you talking to someone?”

Kara turned slightly, still holding onto Lena. “Yeah, my friend is here.”

Cute wrinkles erupted on Lena’s forehead as she processed and then stood on her tiptoes to look over Kara’s shoulder. Upon seeing Barry, Lena let go of Kara but still stood close to her. Kara had a hand on her back; it was warm from being under the covers. Kara gestured between the two strangers. “Lena this is my friend, Barry. Barry this is Lena.”

Barry waved hesitantly. “Sorry for interrupting your morning.”  

Lena whispered to Kara, “I’m going to go put pants on."

Kara laughed quietly and nodded, kissing Lena’s temple before she went back to the bedroom. Barry was looking at her under his eyebrows as she pulled out Lena’s favorite coffee from the cupboard. It definitely seemed like a coffee morning. The machine gurgled and spat but Kara could still feel Barry eyeing her. “What Barry?”

“That was really cute.” 

“You’re annoying.”

He leaned back in his chair and flashed his teeth. “You love me.”

Kara fell against the counter and pouted. “I’ve missed you.”

“Does that work on you too, Barry?” Lena said, re-entering. Not only had she put on a pair of black leggings but her hair was in an un-ordinarily messy bun and from the smell, Kara knew she had brushed her teeth even though the coffee was just going to ruin the effort.

Kara slipped the cup into her reaching hand. “I was just saying that I missed him.”

The sun was making the entire room glow. Lena took a sip of the coffee. Kara sighed. Any slow mornings she was able to get out of Lena were her favorite. Usually Lena woke up before her and was running into the office. There was just something raw and natural about this time of day. Of course Barry Allen wasn’t usually present when she pictured it. “I don’t mean to be rude, but Kara hasn’t actually mentioned anything –“

Barry looked greatly offended. “You haven’t told her about me?”

“What was I supposed to tell her?” Kara exclaimed. Barry moved his hands around in a noncommittal way. “And besides, no one knew about me before last time so you can’t blame me.”

“You didn’t even say you had a friend named Barry” - he put a hand to his chest and swallowed hard -“That hurts, Kara. That really hurts.”

Kara dove over the counter and Barry sped off in a flash of yellow light but he was no match. He may have been the fastest man alive on his own Earth but here he had competition. She jumped over the couch and could hear his laughter as he charged ahead in a blur. Her apartment was not cut out for superheroes chasing each other and eventually he tripped over a chair and went sprawling into the wall next to the door. He groaned but there was still a smile on her face. She stood over him, hands on her hips, victorious until she noticed the smoke from his shoes. “Barry! You’re on fire.”

He jumped up and stomped around until the small flames went out. He shrugged. “Happens sometimes when I’m not in the suit.”

Kara threw her arms around him laughing.

“What. The. Hell.”

They both froze and turned to Lena, with expressions of fear on their faces. There was a loud drumming sound in Kara’s ear that sounded like hummingbird wings. “Lena!”

In half a second her hands were on Lena’s hips and she was looking into Lena’s eyes. “Lena, are you okay?”

Lena was taking deep breaths, her coffee not spilt but the arm and hand holding it so tense they looked frozen in time. Her eyes were wide and she was staring vacantly into the apartment, not at anything in particular but at what was just going on. “Lena.”

The hummingbird slowed to the normal patter of Lena’s heart. “What was that?”

Kara had become so comfortable around Lena that she had just acted on instinct. At first, Kara’s powers were something she feared to show Lena in case it scared her but she soon found that that was not what Lena wanted. They weren’t always on display but she never hid them. If she chose to use them, then she did no matter if Lena was there or not. But those were her powers.

Barry, a person that Lena had just met and never heard of before, had just zipped around the apartment and neither of them had a second thought about it. The last time they had seen each other was amongst a group of people who were used to seeing unusual things. They could race each other or train without any question and it had been so freeing to not worry that that had been exactly what Kara’s mind had reverted to when she saw him again.

Lena’s eyes finally focused on hers, as Barry stood by the door, not sure what he should do. “Okay, so exactly how many aliens do you have as friends because so far I’ve counted four or maybe five but he’s new.”

Kara felt like laughing at the idea that Barry was an alien, but for Lena, not knowing that the multiverse existed or about meta-humans, alien was the only conclusion.

“She knows?” was Barry’s surprised response from across the room.

Kara looked at him. “Well, if she didn’t before she does now.”

He looked to Lena. “Sorry, secret-keeping is a common thing for all of us."

“All of you?” Kara shot Barry a look and he shut his mouth.

She set her hands on Lena’s shoulders. “Okay, so there’s a lot I’m about to tell you. Are you sure you’re okay?” 

Lena just stared at her. “I know you’re Supergirl, I’m sure I can handle it.”

Barry made a high-pitched noise in his throat and without taking her eyes off of Lena, Kara said, “I swear if I didn’t think Lena would have a heart attack, I would fly you into the clouds and then drop you."       

“If you could catch me,” Barry quipped.

“Don’t test me,” Kara said.

Barry became serious quite fast. “…you wouldn’t.”

Lena broke their eye contact and shook her head. “She would never. She likes making threats. She thinks it makes her sound intimidating.

Kara let out a breath she had been holding when she realized Lena was really okay. And then she caught on to what Lena was saying. “Hey, I am very intimidating.”

“Of course you are,” Lena responded and when she saw Kara’s face, she laughed again. “I’m only kidding, Kara. I’ve witnessed it. But right now, when you’re in puppy pajamas, it’s hard to not think everything you do is cute.”

Kara was silent for a beat but Lena was looking at her with a smile and any grievance she was feeling melted away.

“Okay so” - she clapped her hands together - “this is Barry Allen. On his world, he’s called The Flash.”

“Yeah, I’m from Earth-1,” Barry chimed in, “and you guys are on Earth-38.”

“The multiverse theory,” Lena whispered. “It’s real.”

Barry spread his arms out. “Here’s the proof.”

“How exactly did you two meet?”

“Barry ran too fast one time and ended up here,” Kara explained to Lena while Barry beamed with pride. “Don’t give me that look. You didn’t know how to get back.”

She turned her attention to Lena. “We had to combine our speeds and he went back to Earth-1. I didn’t know if I was ever going to see him again but then last Thanksgiving, these strange blue portal things started appearing everywhere. And at that time I didn’t know what they were –“

“That’s what was in the L-Corp lobby the night it got attacked” - Lena was starting to put two and two together - “and that’s when you disappeared. You went to Earth-1.”

Kara looked at her feet. They had never actually talked about the details of that time period. Lena had chosen to forgive her when she promised she wouldn’t leave without warning again and it had not come up after that.

“We were being attacked by aliens and I thought, who would be better to help us fight aliens than an alien. Ah, I still think it’s so cool that you’re an alien” - Kara preened - “Also, what’s L-Corp?”

“It’s the company that Lena owns,” Kara said nonchalantly but Barry blanched. “You’re like what? Twenty-two?"

“I’m twenty-four, actually,” Lena replied politely. “But age doesn’t seem to stop you and Kara from running around as superheroes.”

Barry pointed at her with pursed lips. “Point taken.”

“She’s a genius,” Kara whispered across the counter and Lena bumped her with her shoulder.

“So” - Lena placed her hands on the counter - “you went with Barry to another world to fight aliens.”

“You’re taking this very well.”

“I’m really interested in learning more about multiverse theory. This is incredible,” Lena defended. Kara nodded.

“The Dominators. They invaded Earth-1 so Barry came to get me and we teamed up and we took them down. It wasn’t just us, I mean, there was” - Kara’s focus turned to the ceiling as she thought back - “Cisco and White Canary and Oliver –“

“-Caitlin, Felicity, Dig –“

“-Firestorm?” Barry nodded. “and Thea and –“

“Hold on,” Barry said, “this is a really convoluted list. So pretty much there’s team Flash, team Arrow, and the Legends and then Supergirl came along.”

“There are all of those superheroes on your Earth and here we only have one?”

“And Superman,” Kara said, not forgetting her cousin, “who also told me about a vigilante that he’s met. Oh, and we have Guardian now.”

“Well that’s four people, Kara –“

“And Alex and J’onn and –“

“Kara! I get it. There are more than just you but you can’t say that you’re the not the hero of National City. And they have three different teams? That’s a lot.”

“Well Barry is in Central City and Oliver is in Star City and the Legends are time travelers so...”

“I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that time travel is possible since I now know about the multiverse.”

“Yeah…well that’s it, I guess. That’s where I was. That’s all about Barry. I think you’re up to speed.”

“Except,” Lena started, “why Barry is here right now?”

Kara furrowed her eyebrows and turned to her friend. “Yeah, Barry, why are you here?”

“Like I said before. We want to get the gang back together. Maybe do some more training. Just have fun and see each other again.” Barry shrugged.

“I do miss everyone,” Kara admitted. “Except for maybe Mick” - she shuddered - “he’s creepy. But it was really cool teaming up with you guys.”

“You should come,” Barry urged playfully. She supposed if she let the DEO know, they could take care of things. They had done it before she came out as Supergirl. It wouldn’t be for as long this time, maybe only a day; she wouldn’t be missing much.

“I’d have to call Alex or J’onn,” she said. 

“Do what you need to do. You want me to go get ice cream like last time?”

Lena frowned. “Do not encourage her eating habits. It’s a bit early for ice cream.”

Barry smirked and was gone and back in an instant with a box of donuts. Lena just rolled her eyes while Kara squealed, “That’s so cool.”

Lena looked at her. “You know you can do that too, right?”  

“Yeah,” Kara said like it was obvious, “but it’s different when someone else does it for you.”

Barry stood with his hands on his hips, quite like Supergirl stood, looking proud as can be before grabbing for the same donut Kara was going for. With one look, he chose another one and she walked away valiantly.

Kara pulled out her phone in the living room to ring Alex. It was early on a weekend but Alex would probably still answer, even if it was grumpily.

“What?” It was definitely a grumpy Alex on the other end. Kara could see her messy hair and half-closed eyes just by the sound of her voice. “I’m thinking about going to see Barry again and I wanted to check in to make sure it would be okay.”

“You woke me up for that? You have to ask J’onn, Kara. I love you but bye, I’m going back to sleep.” Alex hung up on her.

Her phone rang only a second later. “Yes, Alex?”

“Wait, Barry like other Earth Barry? Like you’re leaving this universe again? Nope. Don’t think so. Not gonna happen.”

“Alex,” Kara groaned. “He’s my friend. I miss him and I want to visit everyone.”

“The last time you went you didn’t tell anyone, were gone for days and came back talking about defeating an alien race that was attacking their Earth. You must think I’m crazy if I’m going to let you go do that again.”

“I’m not going to fight this time. I’m just going to see everyone and train with them,” Kara explained.

She could hear Maggie through the phone, “Danvers, stop fighting with your sister in my ear, I’m trying to sleep.”

“She thinks she’s leaving this Earth.”

“I don’t know what that means, but she’s a grown woman who can make her own decisions, especially when it’s this early on a Saturday.”

“It’s ten in the morning.”

“And? You didn’t sound too happy when she called.”

“She’s right, Alex. I wasn’t calling to ask your permission. I was calling to make sure the DEO would be okay without me for a day or two. I’ll be back tomorrow at the latest. I have to be back at work on Monday anyway."

“I don’t trust it.”

“Because you don’t know everything about it. I’m not worried. I’ll be back, I promise.”

Alex was silent for a beat. “What if something happens? I can’t get to you if you need me.”

“And I’ll always need you, you know that. But I promise I’m in good hands. There’s a whole bunch of superheroes over there waiting for me. I trust them.”

“Be careful, Kara,” Alex conceded. “But you still have to call J’onn. I can’t authorize your absence.”

“Love you, Alex.”

“Call me right when you get back.”

“Thanks for ruining my weekend, Kara,” Maggie said, loudly. “Now she’s gonna be pacing and worried all day.”

Kara smiled into the phone. “Don’t do that, Alex.”

“Yeah, yeah, be safe.”

“Always am.” Alex scoffed but hung up. There was a hand on her arm; she hadn’t realized Lena had followed her. Barry was still eating donuts at the counter, looking quite content by himself. “One second, I have to call J’onn.”

J’onn said the DEO would be fine and also told her to be safe. Like Alex, he didn’t have much trust and didn’t like the idea of sending her somewhere he couldn’t help her if needed but he had never been able to stop her doing what she wanted before so supposed he couldn’t this time either. She hung up, almost bouncing with excitement before she saw Lena’s face. “What’s wrong?”

“I don’t like it. You’d be so far away.”

Kara at first couldn’t figure out what Lena was talking about and then her mouth turned into a wide ‘o.’ She shook her head, wanting to laugh at herself. “Oh, Lena, I want you to come with me. I’m sorry. I should’ve said that. I just thought it was a no-brainer. I’m not going without you.”

“You should totally come!” Barry piped up from the kitchen. “There are some new people that Kara hasn’t met yet so you won’t be the odd one out or anything. It’ll be fun.”

“I can’t just leave L-Corp,” Lena answered and then turned back to Kara. “And I can’t be the person who stops you from seeing your friends. But this is huge and not well experimented with. Who knows what could happen.”

“Lena, it’s worked before. And it’s a weekend,” Kara admonished. “I know you used to, but when was the last time I let you go into the office on a Saturday?”

Lean smiled at that. “And I never thought you were trying to keep me from my friends. I mean Barry’s my friend. I don’t know everyone else that well, but they all seem cool and I’d like to see them again. You already said you wanted to learn more about the multiverse theory. How incredible would it be for you to actually go there? And if you don’t, I totally get that. I can go another time when we weren’t going to spend the weekend together. But I want to do this with you.”

Kara lowered her voice to a whisper, “Really, it’s selfish, but they already think that I’m pretty cool. You being there would just amp that up.”

Lena chuckled. “You’re such a dork.”

“I’m a cool dork,” Kara said. “So, is that a yes?”

Lena let out a sigh. “Purely for science.”

“Oh, of course,” Kara said, seriously.


	20. Chapter 20

Kara had originally thought that going through the portal would make her feel like her body was closing in on itself, like she was being squashed. But it didn’t feel like anything in particular and then her feet hit solid ground again.

She caught Lena who stumbled a little on the landing. “Not everyone has had practice.”

Lena looked dizzy. “Are you okay?”

"Yeah,” she assured Kara.

Barry had landed opposite Kara and was already striding ahead. They weren’t in the STAR labs hanger this time. Instead, they were in a blue-hued room in which a few objects had been pushed up against the wall to open the space. There was an opening in the wall that led to a curved hallway.

“The girl of steel!” Cisco bellowed and Kara spun around, beaming. He gave her a hug.

“You know this” - he gestured at her clothes - “always throws me off. Where’s the red and blue, girl?”

“Leave her alone, Cisco,” Caitlin said, smiling and waving. Kara realized that all of these people were new to Lena, she had never spoken of them before. It was exactly like the first time though, everyone lined up by team, facing Kara. “You want to do the introductions?”

Kara jumped at the chance. “I got this.”

She waltzed past them all, calling out their name and alter ego, “Oliver Queen, Green Arrow.”

Oliver grunted, his face stoic. “Mick Rory. Heatwave.”

He grumbled, ”Skirt,” and she shrank away from him. She got to the end and skipped back to Lena. “Yes!”

“You forget about me, Supergirl?” Sara Lance strutted into the room, lips pursed and curved into a smirk. She had come from behind Kara and the look in her eyes made Kara squirm, even more than usual now that Lena was in the room. Barry mouthed an “I’m sorry” to her from across the room. Kara cleared her throat, ignoring Sara’s presence by her side. She saw Thea shaking her head from across the room, trying not to laugh.

“Those three are new.”

Barry whirled toward them. “This is Wally, Kid Flash. This is Julian. We don’t really know how he ended up here.”

“Ha, ha, very funny, Allen.” Kara hadn’t expected the British accent.

Sara nudged her and winked. “Maybe this time around we should –“

Barry jumped forward, gesturing at Lena.

“And this,” he said proudly, “Is Kara’s girlfriend, Lena…uh…”

“Luthor,” Lena finished and Kara felt her tense for the reaction to her last name but no one seemed fazed. Except for Sara who threw her head back.

“Of course she is.”

Kara smiled at Lena and took her hand. “Actually this is Lena Luthor, a genius and the CEO of a major company on our Earth who I’m just lucky enough to have as my girlfriend.”

“And it got worse,” Sara grumbled, stomping away toward her team.

Lena squeezed her hand. "Who's that?"

Kara felt her skin crawl with discomfort and whispered, "That's Sara."

"And what's the deal with Sara?"

Kara's nose scrunched up, "She kinda has a thing for me. Well, maybe not a thing for me but she definitely likes to see what reaction she can get from hitting on me."

"Red face, shy, stuttering? I can't blame her."

"Yeah...hey, wait a minute!" 

Lena chuckled softly but didn't say anything else. Kara shot her a weird look but still nothing. She couldn't figure out what Lena was actually thinking. And when the woman didn't seem to be looking to further the small exchange, Kara looked to Barry. “So, what’s next?”

“Wanna race?”

“I thought you’d never ask,” Kara answered.

“Barry, we were –“

“Yeah, yeah, Oliver. In a minute.”

What Kara had thought was a curved hallway was actually a circle around the room. Barry shrugged. “We use it to run tests.”

Kid Flash lined up with them. “I’m not turning down the chance to race an alien.”

Kara flashed him a smile and H.G. shouted, “On your mark. Get set. Go!”

They took off. They were all in line for the most part until Kid Flash started pulling ahead, not by much but enough. Kara looked over at Barry and he gave her a look to say, “Don’t you dare.” No one had specified the rules and she lifted off the ground, easily surpassing Kid Flash and lighting down at the start. The boys pulled up to a stop behind her. “No fair!”

“We said race. You didn’t give any rules.” Kara smiled.

Barry’s eyes widened. “You’re a cheater.”

“You wouldn’t be wrong,” Lena spoke up from amidst the crowd of heroes.

Kara spluttered but Oliver actually came to her defense. “That’s actually a good first lesson for the day.”

“Oliver,” Felicity warned, “we talked about not doing that.”

“Felicity, how else are we going to train?”

Felicity waved around. “Everyone has kept themselves alive. I think they’ve got it.”

They both refused to break eye contact but eventually, Oliver caved. “All I was going to say was that you have to use every advantage you have to succeed.”

“So Lena,” Iris asked, “what powers do you have?”

“Oh, I – I’m not – I don’t –"

Kara rested her hand against Lena’s back. “We don’t have meta-humans on our Earth and Lena’s not an alien.”

“How does that wo - ?” Cisco started but Caitlin elbowed him in the ribs.

Iris smiled. “Oh, that’s cool. I don’t either.”

“Technically none of us do either,” Thea said, pointing at the group from Star City. She put her fists up. “We just use our hands.”

“Buuuutt,” Iris said, “I don’t do that either. You can hang out with Felicity, Caitlin, Cisco and I while these guys train.”

“I do have powers you know,” Cisco added, wiggling his fingers. “But I do enjoy the techy tech stuff.”

“Did you just – “ Julian said but Cisco interrupted, “Pretend I didn’t.”

Everyone seemed geared up to go, except for Kara who looked to Lena. “Are you gonna be okay?"

“Yeah, I’m excited to see you fight?” she sounded confused with herself.

Kara laughed. “That’s new.”

“Probably because I’m certain that they have nothing on you.”

“You’d be right.”

“Supergirl! Did you bring your suit?” It was Oliver again.

“Did I – pfft, did I bring my -?”

She ripped open the front of her shirt and heard Lena whisper quietly to Iris, “She really likes the reveal.”

 

Mick broke his hand against her face. He crouched over and after one howl of pain was able to control it. He chose to sneer at her instead. She shrugged. "I warned you."

"Okay, new rule," Oliver put his hands up to stop the sparring, "no one actually take a swipe at Supergirl. We don't need to hurt ourselves while we're training."

Oliver walked over to them, glaring at Mick. "Next time, don't challenge her to a fight."

"You don't tell me what to do, rich boy."

Oliver shook his head and walked away.

 

Sara prowled around the circle they had created, knees bent low. Kara was opposite, waiting for her to strike. They had switched up partners when Mick realized he had had enough. She refused to actually hit him or anyone for that matter and instead, just evaded his advances. 

Kara watched as Sara flicked her staff open, not coming any nearer, gauging her attack. All of a sudden she sprinted forward, the lance circling through the air to touch down on Kara's shoulder. She knew it would crack if it made contact so she sidestepped swiftly, reaching a hand out to catch the weapon. She let it go just as quickly for Sara's next attack. 

Apparently Sara was under the same impression because her hits never landed too hard and whenever Kara parried them, she tried to do it without much force. The one thing Sara had on her was agility. The woman could move faster than Kara expected and the martial arts she knew, kept Kara on her feet, turning every other way to keep Sara in her line of vision.

The woman swung low on the ground, somersaulting around Kara and coming up behind her. This time though, the spear plummeted with Sara's strength and crashed against Kara's back, splintering. "Shit!"

Kara turned to see Sara staring at her broken weapon, unimpressed by the turn of events. Kara smiled sheepishly. "Sorry."

 

Cisco put together the next pairs. "Why don't we have the girl of steel partner up with the man of steel."

"That names already taken," Kara offered.

"Not on this Earth!"

"It's just Steel, dude," Nate said, walking toward Kara, his skin transforming into metal. She smiled. This might actually be a fair match up. 

His punches that made contact stung. And whenever her fist collided, a loud clang reverberated around the room and caused him to stumble. She was still not using her full strength since she could easily leave dents. Not knowing if damage to the steel could damage his body; she didn't want to take any chances. They went at it, hit after hit, kick after kick until everyone had come around to watch. He had superhuman strength and neither was making any headway. 

Finally Kara made the decision to end their spar. Her eyes lit up as her heat vision reared up to go and she let it loose. Careful not to actually hit Nate, she let it slide across the floor in front of her, leaving charred marks as it went, and right up to his toe. Nate jumped back with a yelp. "No way!"

The steel disappeared, leaving him human once more. Kara laughed at his expression. "I wasn't going to let it hit you."

 

Firestorm set her aflame once and watched in amazement as she stood there, in flames, her suit completely intact. She patted herself out calmly and Firestorm threw their hands up in defeat. Kara refused to fight Ray. If he miniaturized himself, one misplaced move and she would crush him. Barry and Wally didn't ask; the race was enough against Supergirl for them. Oliver looked like he was considering it but chose to spare himself and Thea thought watching her fight was much more fun than fighting herself.

Iris, Caitlin, Cisco, Julien, Felicity, and Lena stood off to the side, watching. Cisco said he was tracking stats but whenever she looked at him, he was clearly much too involved in watching to be keeping track of anything. He was either yelling cheers or wincing at the punches. Julien looked less than thrilled. Iris, Caitlin, and Felicity had circled around Lena. Kara was too focused on her opponent to stop and listen in to hear what they were saying. Lena didn't look overwhelmed and Kara felt better about having left her in a situation where she knew no one. But that didn't seem to matter here. Everyone was kind and welcoming to Lena and Kara could focus on the reason that she had gone to Earth-1 in the first place.

 

“You weren’t bored, were you?” After training, Barry had everyone over to his and Iris’ apartment. They were a little cramped but it was still nice. Everyone was out of their suits, relaxing, not worried about any impending attacks.

“I may be a business woman but I am also a scientist and I just witnessed things I'd never thought were possible." Lena chuckled. “I asked so many questions, Cisco had to have been getting annoyed.”

“Good. I was just worried. I didn’t realize we’d be going at it for so long.”

“You looked really happy.”

Kara sighed. “I was. They’re my friends and I know they’re not aliens but they still kinda get it, you know? And I don’t’ get to see them that often. Superhero fight club. It’s kinda cool.”  

"You held back. A lot. I noticed."

"They're not other aliens that I can wail on. I'd hurt them and I'm not sure they understood that until today," Kara responded. "There's no competition but they like the practice and I like the camaraderie of it all."

“Everyone, hey guys, yeah, let’s all - ” Barry gestured. Kara and Lena were on the couch and Barry and Iris sat down next to them. Sara took a chair, Oliver stood and the rest brought chairs from the kitchen or found a place on the floor. Barry whispered, “They have a lot of questions for you.”

“So, Supergirl, we fought with you once but we don’t know that much about you,” Thea started.

“It’s so cool that you’re an alien.”

Kara laughed at Kid Flash. “That’s exactly what Barry said the first time he met me.”

“So, how’d you end up on Earth?” Oliver grunted.

“You don’t have to answer that.” Lena’s voice was like a breath in her ear; no one else would have heard it. She squeezed Lena’s hand to tell her it was okay.

“My parent’s sent me here when I was young to look after my cousin who was also sent to Earth.”

“Why’d they send you?” Jax was leaning over the back of Sara’s chair.

Kara smiled sadly. “I’m from a planet called Krypton. It was dying.”

Her face went slack and there was quiet for a few seconds. She blinked away the memories of her parents urging her into the pod. Of the bright light behind her as Krypton exploded. Mick was the one to break the silence with his loud, gruff voice, “She okay?”

Kara snapped out of it, heat building behind her eyes. “Sorry, sorry. I was just realizing that if I don’t exist in your universe it’s because here, Krypton’s still out there, thriving. And I’m not Supergirl, but I’m up there with my family. Under Rao’s light just like I remember it.”

“And I’m no longer the last daughter of Krypton,” she ended. Lena reached out and wiped a tear from Kara’s cheek that she hadn’t known she had shed.

“I’m sorry,” Nate said, “We were curious but we shouldn’t have…I’m sorry.”

It seemed like everyone was at a loss. They hadn’t been expecting the story she brought. Kara waved them off, smiling through the grief. “No, no, I shouldn’t have even…happier things. But that’s how I got to Earth and I grew up with an adoptive family. They were wonderful. I work with my sister and a couple of my friends for an agency that deals with alien activity. And then when I’m not Supergirl, I’m a reporter.” 

“What a coincidence,” - Iris reached over and tapped Kara’s leg - “so am I.”

“That’s awesome!” Kara said.

Irish smiled. “We have to compare notes sometime.”  

Kara nodded. “And what about you Lena? What’s your story? How did you two meet?”

“Funny story actually.”

“Is it?” Kara questioned.

“Dark humor I suppose.”

Felicity scoffed. “None of us have the brightest of stories I can assure you.”

“Well, I was adopted into a family. Luthor was their name. The Luthors were incredibly anti-alien. My brother grew up and befriended Kara’s cousin, who is known as Superman. Then he went a little insane and became for lack of better words, evil. He became Superman’s nemesis and Superman threw him in jail.   

“I took charge of my family's company. Changed the name. Tried to change the image. And then a reporter, who was good friends with Superman who I now know is actually his alter-ego showed up to investigate me one day and brought Kara along. She showed faith in me from day one. I’m pretty sure she’s what stopped her cousin from dragging my name through the trenches. She became my friend quite quickly and without any reason.”

“You can tell my family is not the greatest of people. Let’s just say there were many attempts on my life and Supergirl was there to save me each and every time.”

“Maybe but Lena” - Kara cut in - “went up against her mother and saved the entire alien population of National City from being killed. But that’s another story.”

“So that’s how we met,” Lena continued. “And then we fumbled into the dating part of our relationship. It took a little maneuvering.”

“Wow, after all that with your family and you ended up dating an alien,” Ray said.

Lena chuckled. “I didn’t know she was Supergirl until we had already started dating actually. She kept that secret locked tight. But yes, if you were really familiar, a Luthor and Super working together would have been a far cry let alone being in any kind of friendly relationship. But I’m, as Kara has so often reminded me, not my family.”

“That’s kinda crazy romantic in a messed up type of way that only heroes could ever encounter,” Jax commented.           

Lena grimaced. “I don’t think it was messed up. My family of course, yes. But not our relationship. It was tense and hard at times but it was just like any other one. We just had to deal with larger scale problems.”

Kara could tell Lena was getting to the end of her sharing abilities. It was more than Kara had expected her to say, especially among people she didn’t know but Kara supposed they were from a different Earth so Lena figured there was no way they could really impact her life much. “Enough about us, what about you guys?”

“We didn’t bring them with us. They weren’t here the last time either but Team Arrow’s got a new team in training.”

“Iris almost died.”

“Our original captain lost his memories.”

“I’m captain now,” Sara said smugly.”

“Also we all died in a different timeline.”

“Savitar, who almost killed Iris? Yeah, that was a speed remnant of Barry in the future.”

“Mick went to the dark side for a second.”

“Caitlin turned into Killer Snow and tried to kill all of Team Flash.”

“There’s a sociopath trying to kill me.”

“My dead sister is how the universe didn’t collapse on itself and create a new reality."

Lena looked like she was slowly digesting everything she heard and Kara just looked around at everyone to see if they were telling a joke or not. “We need to catch up more often.”

“I gave you a –“

“Yes, the clicky thingy,” Kara finished.

Cisco shut his eyes and with a strained voice, “That is not what it’s called."

They all stayed up late into that night just telling their stories. It was like a therapy session for superheroes. The room went silent when they spoke of Amaya’s death.

None of the stories were happy ones but that was all right because everyone just listened and nodded in support.

By three in the morning, Martin and Jefferson had retired themselves. Mick had fallen asleep. His snoring had become a background track for their conversation. Dig was dozing in and out, stretched across the floor. Whenever someone asked him a question or spoke to him, he’d pretend he hadn’t fallen asleep. Caitlin, Julian, and Ray were all at the kitchen table, their heads down, fast asleep. Thea’s head was in Sara’s lap and Sara was gently stroking her hair, putting her to sleep with the repetition. Nate’s eyes were growing heavy.

Cisco kept trying to wake himself up. He didn’t want to miss anything. But Oliver, Sara, Kara, Barry, Felicity, and Iris were the only ones who were entirely awake. Lena’s head was on Kara’s shoulder and she was yawning every so often.

Kara turned to kiss the top of her head. “Hey.”

“Hey,” Lena responded, her eyes half closed.

“We can go.”

Lena shook her head half-heartedly. “No. No, stay.”

Kara grinned. “Lena, it’s three in the morning and you’re half asleep.”

“But you aren’t,” Lena mumbled.

Barry leaned forward on the couch. “You’re welcome to stay here the night and leave in the morning. The couch pulls out.”

“We should all probably be heading out.” Oliver stood up and started waking up Dig and Thea.

Barry followed his lead. “Do you guys need a place to stay? We can cram in here.”

Sara started moving when Thea sat up. “My team crashes on the ship.”

She kicked Mick awake and all he did was grunt and leave without saying goodbye to anyone. They were already in Central City so Cisco, Caitlin, and Julian didn’t have far to go to get home.

Barry slapped Oliver on the back. “What about you? You’re welcome to stay.”

“We’ve got a hotel we can crash at.”

Kara removed herself from under Lena who readjusted to get comfortable without her. Whether he wanted one or not, Kara gave Oliver a hug and then Felicity and Thea, and then Team Flash save for Julian who shook her hand politely. Dig nodded at her.

Sara hung around for a second until she caught Kara’s attention. She gestured her head toward Lena. “How’d you score that one, Supergirl?”

Kara looked back over at Lena, looking peaceful in sleep, with a dopey smile on her face. “I got extremely lucky.”

“That look on your face is disgusting,” Sara commented with a grimace. Kara shot her a teasingly annoyed look. She tilted her head toward Kara. “You know, you missed out on me, but you didn’t end up doing half bad.”

Sara left with a wink and then the apartment was left to Barry, Iris, Lena, and herself. Barry and Iris had moved the table out of the way. “We just have to pull it out.”

Kara knew he was referring to the slight problem that Lena was currently asleep on it but for Kara, there was no issue. “No problem.”

She scooped Lena into her arms and grabbed the handle under the cushions, pulling it forward and out into a bed. Irish reached into a basket and pulled out sheets. “Why don’t you ever do that to me, Barry?”

Barry looked at her skeptically. “Iris, I might be extremely fast, but I’m no Supergirl.”

Kara giggled and smiled into Lena’s hair as she laid her on the bed. Kara turned to Iris but Barry put his hand out. “Oh, no. Don’t even think about sweeping my girlfriend off her feet.”

Iris laughed, set her hand against Barry’s chest and stood up on her tiptoes to kiss him before leaving for their bedroom. “Goodnight, Kara."

Barry stuffed his hands into his pockets and rocked back and forth on his feet. “How are you?”

Kara looked up from Lena to him. “I’m okay. I think.”

Barry smiled knowingly. Kara adjusted her glasses. “You know I mentioned Guardian but I never told you who it was.”

“Oh, yeah?”

“I bet you’ll never guess,” Kara provoked.

“I don’t know many people on Earth-38, so I’m sure I won’t.”

“Actually, you know him. It’s James.” Barry’s mouth dropped open and Kara nodded.

“What a surprise, huh?”

“A little bit, yeah. He seemed pretty chill with the whole photography thing. How’s Winn by the way?”

“Working with the DEO now. Dating this girl named Lyra who happens to be an alien.”

“I see he has a type then,” Barry teased.

Kara’s head fell into her hand. “How did everyone see that except me?”

“But are you really doing okay?”

“Things are crazy right now. The queen of Daxam, which used to be Krypton’s rival planet, has come to Earth to try to kill me. We don’t really know her other motives. I had a bounty on me at one point.“

“Cool,” Barry said as only another superhero would.

“And Lena’s mother runs an anti-alien organization that is hell-bent on getting rid of the aliens in National City. She has also disappeared. It feels like everyone’s waiting to strike at the same time.”

“And your sister?” Barry had never met Alex but Kara had mentioned her only a few dozen times.

“Happy. Finally.” Kara couldn’t help but smile whenever she thought of the look on Alex’s face that she hadn’t seen for years. “She’s dating this NCPD cop. It was a little rough in the beginning but Maggie eventually came around. It’s the happiest I’ve seen Alex in forever. I think they’re good for each other.”

They stood in silence or a moment. “How are you Barry? You almost – with Iris – and I…”

“Yeah. I’ve loved Iris for years and years but it’s like everything became extremely clear the night I thought I had lost her. She’s all that matters now and I’m putting us first.”

“Even before saving the world?” Kara asked. It was the question they all had that couldn’t be answered easily. Kara had confronted Kal about it and he still hadn’t figured it out. She expected Barry not to have a concrete answer either.

“I’m not going to stop being The Flash but Wally’s here now and he can handle himself out there. I just need to take a step back and start to be Barry Allen for a little while.”

That sentiment had Kara looking back down at Lena. “When I’m with her it doesn’t matter. Nothing does. It doesn’t matter that I can lift a car or fly. I’m just Kara to her.”

“And saving the world?” Barry threw her question back at her.

“That’s who I am. And she’s never once asked me to give that up. And if I save the world, I save her. So why would I ever stop?”

When Barry didn’t say anything else, she looked up to find him beaming at her. He motioned and she went to him, giving him a tight hug. “Sometimes you seem more human than any of us.”

She knew Barry hadn’t met anything by it, but the words still had her heart clenching. Her entire life she had been struggling to become human just to realize that she could have the same values that made people “human” and still be Kryptonian. They didn’t need to be kept separate. There were evil humans out there that didn’t abide by those ideals. Her being alien had nothing to do with her compassion or strength or faith. She forced a smile on her face. “You’d better not forget I could crush you with a finger.”

“I’m really glad you came,” Barry said with an intense sincerity that Kara wasn’t expecting. “I wasn’t lying when I said I was gonna miss you.”

“Don’t be a stranger, Barry Allen.”

“Sleep well, Supergirl,” he said when he passed her.

Kara crawled into the bed. Lena adjusted almost immediately and unconsciously to burrow into Kara’s side. She didn’t fall asleep immediately. The stories that were told were rampaging around her head, not letting her drift off. It was weird to take comfort in them but she couldn’t help it. Knowing that she had people, who called her a friend, who were battling their own demons made her feel less alone. “Darling?”

Kara started. She hadn’t realized Lena was awake. “Yes?”

“I can hear you thinking.” Kara’s stomach shook with her quiet laughter but she didn’t explain. Lena pushed herself up onto an arm, her hand coming to lie on Kara’s chest. “What’s going on in there?”

“A lot.” She wasn’t surprised by Lena’s furrowed brow. Usually, Lena was the one to use two-word answers while Kara rambled on and on.

Kara picked up Lena’s hands and intertwined their fingers, bringing it to her lips to kiss. It was too much to say or even be able to put into words so when Lena asked, “What are you thinking about?” Kara turned her head awkwardly to the side and brought their lips together. “You.”

 

When they got back to Earth-38, Kara’s phone dinged in rapid succession. Text messages didn’t transfer across the multiverse.

 **Alex (11:08pm)** _Have you told Lena about Earth birthday?_

 **Alex (11:011pm)** _Earth to Kara_

 **Alex (11:13pm)** _Kara it’s on Friday I need to know_

 **Alex (11:20pm)** _If you do not answer me, I’m going to forget about it entirely_

 **Alex (11:25pm)** _Wow the first Earth birthday we’ve never celebrated. How sad._

Lena looked over her shoulder. The word “birthday” caught her eye. “I can guess what Earth birthday is but were you not going to tell me it was in three days?”


	21. Chapter 21

Kara opened the door before Lena could even knock. “Lena!”

“Hi.” Lena bit her lip and Kara’s eyes followed the movement until she remembered why Lena had come over, a blush creeping up her cheeks. Lena smiled warmly and held out a package. “I don’t bake.” 

Kara’s eyes lit up at the sleeve of cookies and she wiggled her fingers out toward it. “Gimmie, gimmie.”

Lena leaned in, leaving a kiss on the corner of Kara’s mouth, handing over the box. Kara pointed to another bag. “What’s that?”

"That is none of you business,” Lena teased and Kara narrowed her eyes in suspicion.

There was a yell from inside, “Kara, are you going to invite your guest in?”

Lena’s brow furrowed. “She does know that I have a key right?”

Kara grimaced, sheepishly. “…Maybe.”

“Kara,” Lena warned.

“What? She’s like my mom. I didn’t know if I should tell her you basically live here. Alex and Maggie haven’t moved in together. I didn’t know what I was allowed to say.” 

“She does know we’re together, right?” Lena asked with such a worried tone that Kara could only guess the situation had happened to her before.

Kara rolled her eyes. “Yes. She knows you’re my girlfriend.”

Eliza suddenly appeared around the door, smiling. “I promise I taught her better manners than this. Come in, Lena.”

“Thank you, Dr. Danvers”

“Oh please” - Eliza retreated to the kitchen - “call me Eliza.”

Kara bounded after Eliza, setting the cookies on the counter.

“Hey, Luthor!” Maggie called from the couch in the living room where she sat under Alex’s arm.

“Hi, Lena."

Kara stepped right up to her. “Do you want something to drink?”

“No, I’m all right.”

“We have wine, Lena,” Eliza said.

Kara smiled hesitantly. “She bought it for you.”

“She didn’t have to do that,” Lena commented.

“It’s Eliza. You’ll understand eventually.”

“Sure, that sounds wonderful, Eliza,” Lena said, keeping her eyes on Kara. It never took much for Kara to get lost in Lena’s eyes. Lena hadn’t stayed the night before so they hadn’t seen each other in two days, which for them was a lot. Kara thought one day was pushing it but sometimes Lena needed time to herself and Kara would kiss her goodbye with the offer that the door was open if she changed her mind.

Kara was that way with almost everyone in her life though. When Alex started dating Maggie, it had been an adjustment that she couldn’t see her sister every day. She couldn’t imagine what it would be like if she didn’t work with Winn and James. Lucy was the only person she didn’t see on a daily basis and that had been weird to her at first. They had gone from working together at the DEO to being split up.

But by watching how James had interacted with Lucy, hearing about Clark and Lois in the beginning, and now Alex and Maggie, she didn’t see why she would ever not see Lena if she could. Clark and Lois were unbearable at first and no one could ever separate them and even the last time Clark was here, he kept mentioning about how he needed to get back to Lois. That’s how Kara always felt: that she needed to get back to Lena.

Lena was smiling at her when she heard Maggie, who knew entirely all too well that Kara would be able to hear her, whisper to Alex, “I swear your sister is about to jump her girlfriend. Ow, Danvers, no pinching!”

“Shut up then,” Alex warned.

“I’m just saying that this unresolved sexual tension is grating,” Maggie defended.

“She can hear you.”

Maggie was obviously amused. “You act as if I didn’t know that.”

Kara closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Do not make me come over there, Maggie.”

“And what are you gonna do about it, Little Danvers?”

Kara turned around, challenging, “Do you want to find out?”

Alex leaned over and whispered to Maggie, “Babe, you’re really tough but she’s –

“Supergirl, yeah, yeah, I know.” Maggie sounded annoyed. She put her hands up in surrender “My mouth is shut…for now.”

“It would be wonderful if we could avoid fighting in the apartment,” Eliza said in her mom voice. Everyone nodded but Lena had missed everything and was looking to Kara for answers. She shook her head, wanting to avoid the subject. “Just Maggie being Maggie.”

“About me?”

“About us,” Kara clarified and received a curt nod and an, “ah,” in return.

“Where are the boys?” Eliza questioned. Kara took Lena’s hand and guided her to the chair in the living room. Kara perched on the armrest, Lena’s arm wrapping around her waist.

“Late as always.” Alex rolled her eyes. 

“They probably just got caught up at work,” Kara brushed off.

Maggie’s head fell back against the couch and she groaned, “Oh my god. I know James is Guardian.”

Kara’s eyes flashed to Lena who shrugged. “I thought everyone knew James was Guardian.”

“Well, apparently they do now,” Kara mumbled. “He’s not gonna be happy.”

“He’s worse at hiding it than you are, Kara,” Maggie teased though Kara took it more of an insult than anything else and crossed her arms with a “hmmph” and a glare.

“All he does is modulate his voice. And he doesn’t even do it well. It still sounds like James. And, whenever there’s news about Guardian, James has a limp or a stiff neck or his ribs are bruised,” Maggie explained

Alex set her hand on Maggie’s thigh. “How about we don’t tell him that? Just a thought.”

“He should know he’s not convincing. And besides” - Maggie looked to Kara - “I read your article on him. He needs to work on giving a statement. He doesn’t inspire much faith.”

“I think you’re biased.”

“Because I’m a cop? Yeah, he’s trying to do our job and instead, does it poorly and leaves us a mess to clean up. He doesn’t have training and it’s obvious. I get he’s trying to help people but we are too and so the question is, why didn’t he think about becoming a cop? Instead, he breaks the law as he tries to keep the peace which is counterproductive.”

Lena spoke up, “Well, couldn’t you say that Supergirl is doing the same thing, then?”

Kara shot her a look but Lena just shook her head and waited for Maggie’s response. “Yes. But, Supergirl works for the government. She has directors and trained people who work with her. She isn’t the highest authority. Guardian does what he wants, when he wants, without having a sense of order.”

“Is there a difference between hero and vigilante then?”

Maggie shook her head. “Hero and vigilante? Depends. A vigilante can be hero but then again, they may not be. And who then decides who’s a hero and who’s not? The people they protect.”

“Superhero and vigilante? Yes. Superpowers for one thing. But there’s a problem with vigilante’s who don’t work with the police in general and Guardian hasn’t ever come forward and offered to work with us rather than as another force in the city. I’m not saying it would ever work but it could make a difference in how people view him. The problem is that James wants to be seen as a hero. But there are cops and firefighters and so many other people out there who are everyday heroes that don’t get that support. He came into the persona with the wrong intentions. It was to make himself feel good.”

There was a knock at the door and Kara hopped up. “Let’s just table this discussion.”

“I wasn’t planning on ruining your birthday, Kara,” Maggie agreed.

“Earth Birthday!” Kara yelled from the door. There was a distinction.

 

“Happy Birthday to you!” The song filled the apartment. Kara stood at the head of the table as Alex held a cupcake out toward her, smiling wide at Kara’s grin. This was suddenly all different for her. For years it had just been Kara, Alex, and Eliza celebrating together. They would get a cake and watch a movie. Or they’d spend the day at the zoo. But this year she was surrounded by all of the people she considered family. 

Winn and James had eventually shown up. Kara didn’t mention the cut near James’ eye. Maggie had tackled Winn to the ground almost instantly. When everyone just stared, she stood up and shrugged. “He bet me that I couldn’t catch him off guard.”

“That was a stupid bet,” Alex had commented.

Winn slapped ten bucks in Maggie’s hand and rubbed the back of his head, grimacing.

J’onn showed up, hugging Eliza and kissing her cheek. She had welcomed him with open arms after learning the true story about Jeremiah and Kara had a feeling that they talked more often than either of them let on.

And then much to Kara’s surprise, Kal flew through the window with a windswept yet smiling Lois and she barreled into him accidentally sending them both flying back out the window.

Kara shyly introduced Lena to her cousin and Lois. The nerves were mostly about Lois who could be extremely abrasive if she wanted to. “Kal, this is Lena. You’ve met.’

Lena shook his hand. “Under different pretenses I suppose. And a different name.”

“But now you know.” He nodded with what Kara thought was a genuine smile on his face.

“And Lena this is –“

“Lois Lane.”

“Lena Luthor,” Lois said with a smirk. Everyone in the room was silent and Kara exchanged a glance with Kal. The women looked like they knew each other.

“It’s been a while, Lois. I see you’ve bagged Clark Kent or should I say the man of steel.”

“Didn’t do so bad yourself, Lena. You’ve got the girl of steel wrapped around your little finger, I see.”

Their words were tense yet teasing and Kal hovered over Lois, not knowing quite what to say or ask.

“You two know each other?” Maggie asked, breaking the silence that could have lasted forever.

“Maybe a little.”

“Lena, you hurt me” - Lois clutched at her chest in faux pain - “I’d say three years of friendship can count for more than “a little.”

“Lois,” Kal said, “you never mentioned you knew her. I feel like that would’ve come up when –“

“There really wasn’t anything to say, Clark. As much as you were buddy-buddy with her brother, you had no interest in his little sister. And besides, when we met, you and Lex had already started to argue. What was to be gained from drudging up the past?”

“Besides,” Lois looked back to Lena, “we haven’t talked in years.”

“It was for the best.”

“I wasn’t calling you out,” Lois responded.

“Were we friends?” Lena challenged.

“Rivals more so.”

“That sounds more like it. But it never got dirty, I’ll give you that.”

“Oh, then you missed all the fun,” Maggie interceded.

The joke landed, at least for Lois, who howled with laughter. She pointed at Maggie. “I like this one.”

Alex slipped her arm around Maggie’s waist. “So do I.”

What tension there was dissipated and Kara shrugged at Kal and then turned to Lena. “Are you alright?”

“I was counting down the days until Lois Lane would walk back into my life.”

“I didn’t know she was coming,” Kara explained.

Lena shook her head. “I’m not mad at all. I’m fine. It’s actually refreshing, knowing that there is something from my past that isn’t a complete wreck.”

And now, all of these people, her family, stood around her and she couldn’t be happier. They finished the song and Kara took a deep breath before Alex pulled the cupcake away quickly, shouting, “Gently!”

Kara gave her a sheepish smile, remembering that every single year, she forgot and Alex got a face full of frosting and cupcake, some of the pieces frozen over and hardened. Alex offered her the cupcake again and she blew softly, extinguishing the flame. Lena leaned over and kissed her cheek. “I hope you wished for something.”

“I did. It was different. I’ve always wished for the same thing” – Kara looked around the room – “but I have that now.”

 

“I’ve gotta go meet Lyra, I’ll see you guys tomorrow!” Winn said, halfway out the door.

Kara ran to him and crushed him in a hug. “Why didn’t you bring her?”

He shrugged. “It was Earth Birthday and I know she’s my girlfriend but she’s not really your friend. It felt like an imposition.”

“Thanks for coming, Winn.”

“I wouldn’t miss it.”

The table was a mess of wrappers from cupcakes that hadn’t lasted an hour. After Kara had eaten her special one from Alex, Maggie bet her that she couldn’t fit five in her mouth. Much to Lena’s horror and Lois’ amusement, she tried it. She couldn’t fit them.

J’onn said his goodbyes as soon as Maggie brought up the question of which super could eat a whole sleeve of cookies the fastest. James had stuck around to see Clark lose spectacularly and then kissed Lois on the forehead and hugged Kara tight to his chest. “This is it, isn’t it?

“What are you talking about?” Kara leaned back in the hug so she could see his face.

“What you’ve wanted forever,” he stated simply. Kara nodded, catching onto his meaning: the feeling of security and family and happiness. It’s all she ever wanted.

His smile was as warm as she remembered it. “You’re happy.”

It wasn’t a question and she didn’t respond. “I’m happy. And I have a gift for you.”

Kara quirked her head to the side. No one was supposed to bring her gifts, but James just backed up and opened the door. Kara squealed and Lucy Lane jumped into her arms. She twirled them around, laughing. “I thought you said you couldn’t get off work!”

“Well I couldn’t and then James gave me a call and I figured it out.” She shot James a look that Kara couldn’t quite decipher but he waved, “Bye everyone,” and closed the door.

“You should have told me!”

“I wanted it to be a surprise.” Lucy’s face went from a grin to grim as she looked over Kara’s shoulder. “Lois.”

“Lucy.” The sisters stared at each other but a silent decision seemed to have been made and they said nothing more.

Alex leaned over Kara’s shoulder. “I’d offer a cupcake but this one ate them all.”

“Oh my goodness” – Kara jumped, grabbing Lucy’s arm and dragging her over to Lena – “You two haven’t met. Lena this is Lucy. Lucy this is Lena.”

“It’s nice to finally meet Lois’ sister.” Lena reached out a hand.

Lucy soured but didn’t make a retort, instead agreeing, “I thought I might never meet Kara’s girl.”

Lucy turned on her feet. “Or Alex’s.”

“Detective Maggie Sawyer.”

“Director Lucy Lane.”

“Alex’s aforementioned girlfriend.”

“Alex’s best friend.”

Lucy and Maggie were acting like they were trying to one-up each other. Kara saw Alex and Lois exchange a glance. Lois rolled her eyes and Alex shook her head. Everyone let them continue their exchange, not knowing quite how to put an end to it until Eliza decided enough was enough. She reached her hand out to them. “Alex and Kara’s mother. Nice to meet you. Now, are you two ladies finished?”

Lucy looked at Alex and smirked. “I like this one.”

“Back at ya, Luce.” Alex grabbed hold of Maggie’s hand.

 

Lucy Lane knew how to keep a party going and it was only when she herself was about to pass out on the couch that Kara’s Earth Birthday party came to a very pleasant end. Clark and Lois were flying back to Metropolis. Kara had never spent a whole lot of time with Clark, let alone Lois, growing up but she seemed nice and Kara wished they could both be around more. He hugged her tightly and whispered, “Sorry for being weird when you told me you two were dating. She’s lovely, Kara.”

For the first time, watching him fly off, she didn’t feel a sinking feeling in her chest and she heard him call to her, across the sky in the broken Kryptonese that he knew, “Skilor rip, Kara.”

When she turned around, she saw Lucy huddled in the corner with Lena. They were whispering intensely to each other and when she realized her hearing was zoning in on them, she immediately changed her course so she wouldn’t hear what they were saying. Eliza was dozing off in an armchair and Alex was patting her awake.

Maggie elbowed Kara. “Got plans with Lena tonight?”

“Huh?” Kara scrunched up her face.

Maggie wiggled her eyebrows. “Plans, Little Danvers. Plaaaaans.”

“No, we aren’t – that’s not any of your – I can’t –“

Maggie laughed. “Don’t have a stroke on me, Kara. I was just messing with you.”

“Are you giving my daughter a hard time, Maggie?” Eliza stood up.

“Wouldn’t be doing my job if I wasn’t messing with one of the Danvers sisters now, would I?” Alex put her arm around Maggie’s shoulder while giving her a look that said “unbelievable” but was full of adoration.

Lena and Lucy broke off their secretive conversation, joining the rest of the women in the living room. Lucy took Kara into a hug fit for a Kryptonian.

“I’m so glad you came,” Kara murmured into her hair.

Lucy squeezed even tighter. “I’m so glad I didn’t miss it. And you were right” – her words were muffled by Kara’s shoulder but she still heard them – “I need to figure whatever is in my head about James because I miss you guys so much and I would’ve hated myself for missing your Earth Birthday.”

And then it was the Danvers women, Maggie and Lena. Eliza picked up her purse, kissing Kara on the forehead. “It was so nice to see you, sweetie.”

“Wait, where are you going? You’re not going to just stay here? You always stay here,” Kara questioned stepping toward her.

Eliza smiled. “There’s no space for me here now.”

“What are you talking about?” Kara asked with sheer confusion. Maggie stifled a laugh and Alex elbowed her. Kara looked over and Alex’s grin turned into a neutral face as she looked away from her little sister. “You’ve slept in the bed before. I can take the couch if –“

“Kara, honey,” Eliza said in the “mom knows everything” voice, “I know Lena lives here now.”

Kara spluttered and Maggie actually burst out laughing. “I am so glad I’m dating you, Danvers. I’ve never had this much entertainment in my entire life.”

“Despite the fact that it’s just blatantly obvious, Kara,” Alex said, seemingly taking pity on her. “Mom was in the bathroom and she saw your bedroom. Lena’s stuff is everywhere.”

“And you’re not mad?” Kara asked Eliza who looked incredulous at the question.

“Mad? You’re an adult, Kara. You make your own decisions.”

“That’s not what you thought about me being Supergirl.”

Alex groaned. “Why would you bring that up again? We were so past that.”

“Supergirl and having your girlfriend living with you are two entirely different things. One is life or death and the other is the natural course of a relationship.”

“I would argue that moving in can be life or death,” Maggie commented.

Eliza turned toward her and Alex. “Is that why you two haven’t made the decision yet?”

Alex blanched and Maggie’s mouth fell open but no words came out. Kara crossed her arms proudly and shot a snooty look at her sister.

“Lena, I’m sorry my daughter asked you to pretend you didn’t live here.”

Lena shrugged. “I technically do still have my own place that I stay at sometimes so I haven’t moved permanently.”

Alex seemed to be finding her words again. “You shouldn’t have to stay in a hotel, mom. You can stay with me.”

“It’s all right. I already have a hotel and I’ll lose money if I cancel now. Bye girls, you all have a good night now.” The door shut behind her.

“Um, Alex? Is Maggie okay?”

“I’m fine,” Maggie almost shouted, her voice raspy, “I just wasn’t expecting that from your mom. She got us. She got us good.”

“We should get going too.”

“Don’t want to be interrupting anything,” Maggie hinted, apparently back to her normal self. Kara felt her face get hot but Lena just smiled, taking everything with grace like she always did.

“Happy Birthday, kid,” Maggie saluted. “See ya later, Luthor.”

Alex hugged Kara. “Happy Earth Birthday, Kara.”

Kara leaned into the hug, reveling in all the memories it brought with it. “I wouldn’t be here without you.”

“I wouldn’t have had it any other way.” Alex kissed her cheek and took Maggie’s hand to leave.

Kara made sure the door was shut and twirled on her heels. Her eyebrows lowered as she looked at Lena over the rims of her glasses. Lena was picking around the cupcake mess, trying to clean up. “You don’t have to pretend like you didn’t hear.”

“I didn’t listen. I swear,” Kara promised. “But you didn’t seem to friendly to each other when she got here.”

Lena stuck her pointer finger in her mouth, licking off the discarded frosting. “We had a little discussion and we found that we have a lot more in common than either of us would have thought. She’s nice. It was a bad first impression on my part.”

“The Lois thing?” Kara said, following Lena’s lead and finding leftover frosting to eat.

“I don’t know Lucy and I said the wrong thing but all is forgiven. I guess I didn’t realize you two were so close,” Lena pondered.

Kara laughed because at the beginning, they were not close at all. Lucy did not like Supergirl and Kara never felt like they totally clicked, which had mostly to do with James. But when she revealed her identity to Lucy and they worked together at the DEO, something cracked open between them and they both stepped through.

Lucy and Alex had always had something a little more. It may have been that a special agent and a lawyer turned director had more to talk about. They leaned on each other. If Alex needed someone else’s opinion outside of Kara, she would go to Lucy. They had an unspoken understanding of one another that puzzled Kara. But they both loved Lucy to death and she them in turn. They’d been through a lot together and those things aren’t easily forgotten.

“I love her and I don’t get to see her enough.”

Lena leaned against the table and pulled Kara to her, wrapping her arms around Kara’s waist. Kara picked up strands of Lena’s hair and twirled them between her fingers. “Did you have a good time tonight?”

“I had a wonderful time tonight.” Kara returned Lena’s small smile.

“Well, if you haven’t forgotten, I had something with me when I came here tonight.”

Kara could feel excitement bubbling in her stomach but she tried to stay calm. “Of course I didn’t forget.”

“It’s for you.”

“You didn’t have to get me anything. I just like that you came.”

“Okay then, it’s for us.”

Kara cocked her head to the side in confusion and Lena chuckled, pulling on her to follow. They left the mess, Lena walking her into the bedroom. Lena pointed to the bedside table where a small black box sat. Kara looked over at her. “That?”

“That is it.” Kara didn’t move. She didn’t want to be rude but she didn’t know if she was supposed to know what it was or not. “Um…”

“I’ve been working on it for a while now.” Lena let go of her hand and walked to the box. “But then I heard about Earth Birthday and I figured that would be the perfect opportunity. I had to speed up the progress a bit to finish it in three days but it is finished.”

That was not an explanation and Kara was in the dark about what exactly it was. Lena gestured at it again. “It is yours now, so I think you should do the honors.”

When Kara hesitated, Lena smiled and beckoned her over. “Do you see that button right there?”

Kara reached down and pressed it. There was clicking noise and the box began to open, the sides disconnecting so that the inner workings could be seen. The lighting in the room changed subtly. Its color didn’t seem like natural light but it was familiar to her. She reached out, hovering her hand over the box, her fingers blocking out the light and leaving distorted shadows on the wall. 

She looked around. The light was reaching every corner of the room but it didn’t spread out in a haze. It was clear like sunlight –

Her eyes popped wide open. She spun around and around in awe, drinking it in. The smile she received from Lena was heartwarming and she whisked the woman up in her arms.

Lena was heavy; it almost blew her mind. To Kara, Lena weighed nothing. Of course, she knew, but she had never considered before that people had a density and weight to them that required strength to handle. But she could feel the way her muscles tightened and strained with the small task of holding Lena. It took thought and effort to keep her off the ground.

This was the first time she had ever known what a human actually felt like. If she remembered far enough back, she could remember holding a baby Kal-El but that was nothing to a grown adult. 

For the first time she was taken aback by the strength she received from living under a yellow sun. She had picked up Fort Rozz and flew it into space. She was able to lift an entire ship but now she had to set Lena back to the ground because she felt winded.

Lena reached up and wiped a tear from her cheek. She couldn’t help the tears, she was so happy. The memories that flooded in were full of family and her home. She saw her mother and father clearly again, not just the unsatisfying holographic versions of them. Aunt Astra. Baby Kal. Her bedroom and out the window, the expanse of Krypton, shining bright in the red light of the sun. 

“Lena, you are…I don’t even have words right now,” Kara said through the tear-filled laughter.

“I take great pride in making Kara Danvers speechless.”

Kara placed her hand on Lena’s cheeks, looking her in the eyes. “You are incredible. I don’t even – how?”

Lena reached up to take Kara’s hands in her own. “A lot of failures. But in the end, we got it. It doesn’t work exactly the same way a sun would work but there’s a frequency that you – well actually you probably can’t hear it now - that tricks your cells. It pretty much absorbs the red light and creates a coating over your usually yellow-sun infused cells, tricking them into only recognizing the red light. Otherwise, you would have to take the time to deplete the yellow sunlight from your cells and then also take the time to recharge. I knew that wasn’t an option and this seemed like the quickest working way. When you turn it off, you get all of your strength and powers back.”

“And you said this was for us…”

Lena nodded, looking away from Kara. “I started development when I promised you we’d figure out a way we could be together. It was the only thing I could think of that would work that would do no harm to either of us which meant it was the only option. But through the process I realized” – she looked back to Kara – “that this would be so much more to you than just that. And by the look on your face, I was right.”

“I didn’t want you to have to change who you are to be with me,” Lena started, “ and with this, you haven’t changed or lost or gained anything, you’re –“

“Me,” Kara said bluntly. “I’m Kryptonian. The way Kryptonians are on Krypton. Just me.”

It was something she hadn’t realized she had longed to feel again. “Thank you.”

“You deserve the world, Kara Zor-El.”

Kara beamed at the sound of her name. “I haven’t been able to be her in so long.”

“Do you remember that one morning when you were telling me about first coming to Earth and then you had to fly away and save the day?”

“Yes.”

“You were talking about how your entire life you had to learn to be human. That’s what your purpose was. You spoke of it as a burden. You didn’t sound too happy about it” - Lena caressed her cheek - “I want you to be exactly who you are with me. Kara Danvers, Supergirl, Kryptonian, Kara Zor-El. I want them all.”

“You were concerned for my safety and I know you would never hurt me on purpose, but I also know that your fears were completely valid. One wrong move…I understand. And I know you not having your powers right now seems to negate me wanting every part of you but I promise I’m not trying to take that away from you. I was simply –“ 

“Lena, Lena,” Kara reassured, “I never once thought that. Supergirl is what I do. This is who I am. Above all else, I am Kryptonian. And right now I'm nothing more and nothing less than that. If there was any way I was going to be with you, this is exactly how I would want it.”

“That’s what rambling feels like, isn’t it?”

Kara nodded furiously and giggled. “Now you know how I feel.”

“You’re happy.”

“For once it seems like every part of my life is in alignment. I can balance it all. You make it easy.” Kara leaned down the few inches and kissed Lena, warm and gentle. It was strange that for the first time in thirteen years, she didn’t have to hold anything back. She couldn’t break Lena; she could finally feel comfortable in a situation that had never held any pleasure in the past. Not that there had been many times. Lena’s office was the one and only time with Lena. And just one other time but that had been in college and so far away that she barely remembered it. She was worried and agitated the entire time.

Holding Lena, surrounded by the light of a red sun, she felt at ease and calm.

Lena tangled her hands in Kara’s hair, deepening the kiss. Kara’s hands drifted down Lena’s sides, fingering the edge of her shirt and fisting the fabric, pulling Lena closer. Kara landed kisses down Lena’s jaw to her neck, sucking at the skin and drawing quick intakes of breath from Lena.

She drew the shirt up slowly and when she pulled it over Lena’s head, she was smiling at Lena’s eyes. Her pupils were blown out wide, erasing almost all of the green. Kara reached down, her hands grabbing Lena’s ass. “Do you think you can still-?”

“We’ll find out,” Kara breathed out. She lifted up, Lena wrapping her legs around Kara’s torso. She was wobbly, unused to the strength required, but that just made them both laugh until she pressed Lena’s back up into the wall, her lips latching onto Lena’s collarbone, leaving a wet trail wherever her mouth met skin.

"I guess even without superpowers, you still have these," Lena commented, squeezing Kara's biceps.

Lena’s hands quickly fumbled at the buttons of her shirt, leaving the shirt hanging open at Kara’s sides. Lena blinked at the sight of Kara’s abs. “Fuck.”

Kara smiled against Lena’s hand. “Language.”

Kara quickly lowered Lena to the bed though it was more of a semi-graceful drop than anything. She ripped her shirt the rest of the way off, throwing it to the side as Lena hiked her hips up, shoving her pants down her legs. Kara helped her pull them the rest of the way off. “Oh, Rao.”

Lena sat up on her elbows and smirked, motioning for Kara to come closer with a finger.

“Alex is about to lose thirty bucks,” Kara commented, happily obliging Lena and sinking onto the bed.

 

Through sleepy-eyes, Kara could see Lena’s messy hair, laid out on the pillow. The red glow was the only light in the room.

Lena smiled, looking as exhausted as Kara felt. She reached out, stroking Kara’s hair. They were face to face on the bed, the sheets sticking to their skin. To be entirely honest, Kara was glad that she didn’t sweat under the yellow sun of Earth. It was hot and sticky and itchy. She squirmed and Lena laughed. Kara huffed in response, which just made Lena laugh more.

Lena smiled, her fingers trailing across Kara’s collarbone. “I know they’ll be gone as soon as we turn the red sun lamp off but I kinda like how they look on you.” 

Kara inched closer and Lena looked like she was about to protest because of the amount of heat Kara gave off but instead she sighed when Kara grabbed her hand and interlaced their fingers. Lena’s eyes were back to their usual shining green and looking into them, Kara had a revelation.

“Do you remember when I told you about Krypton? And how they matched people? There it wasn’t - it wasn’t about….love. It wasn’t this.”


	22. Chapter 22

**Kara (7:03am)** _Sorry, Alex_

 **Maggie (7:25am)** _YEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSS_

It was an absolutely beautiful day. Kara almost spilled her latte skipping into work and even Snapper couldn’t take away the massive smile that was plastered onto her face. She answered everything he asked of her with solid positivity and he looked affronted and disgusted at her happiness. He walked away grumbling each time until he stopped coming altogether and sent her emails instead.

To say Kara was surprised when Maggie showed up was an understatement. It wasn’t that she didn’t like Maggie but the detective never showed up at CatCo unannounced, looking for Kara.

Kara swiveled in her chair when she heard her name. “Maggie? Is everything okay?”

“I don’t know. I was just looking for Alex. Have you heard from her?”

Kara shook her head, leaning back in her chair. “Didn’t you guys go home together after the party last night?”

“Yeah but she wasn’t there when I woke up this morning and she never answered your text. I’ve tried calling and texting her but nothing.”

“Maybe she’s at work?” Kara offered. Alex always answered her calls and she figured she did the same with Maggie, but otherwise, no personal calls at work was her sister’s motto.

Maggie shook her head. “I checked with Winn. She hasn’t been in.”

Kara grabbed her phone to see if she had any messages when it rang. She smiled and held it for Maggie to see. “Mystery solved.”

She answered. “Yeeeeeesss, Alex?”

“Hello.” She froze, every muscle in her body tensing. The voice was definitely not Alex’s. It was deeper and sounded modified. “Kara Danvers.”

“Who is this?” Maggie was staring at her intently, her arms crossed as she caught on to Kara’s body language. Nothing about this was good. There were too many voices screaming in Kara’s head.

“That’s a question for you now, isn’t it? And I know the truth.”

“What do you want?” she questioned pointedly.

“I have your sister.” Kara started to feel like the room was spinning. Maggie was gesturing, trying to get some information out of her but Kara was too focused on not crushing her phone to care. 

Her phone dinged. Maggie was looking over her shoulder and they both saw a picture of Alex, unconscious on the ground, pop up on Kara’s screen. Kara couldn’t speak and Maggie didn’t say anything. The man on the other line listed out the situation and his demands but all Kara heard was the threat he made to Alex’s life. It was the one thing she knew could happen but never had believed would. It was the risk with people knowing who she really was: the people she cared about would always be in danger.

There was a moment where everything she envisioned for her future vanished and faded into nothing by grey. She had one constant in her life, one unwavering and irrevocably important person. Without Alex in the picture, there was no picture. Kara never thought about what her life would be like without Alex because that wasn’t an option for her. Ever since landing on Earth, Alex had always been there and would always be there. She was the one constant for Kara, the person that never wavered. She was Kara’s strength. She was her hero. Everything good Kara had ever done came from Alex being her sister. There was not a future that Alex was not in.

Everything she had known had been taken from her and she still felt like she couldn’t hold on to anything. Like everyone in the world wanted something and she gave until there was nothing left, because that’s who she was. And she would let them take it all, but they would not take Alex.

 

 **Sent (10:09am)** _I’m probably not going to be home tonight. Call you when I can_

 

She had thought J’onn wouldn’t let her on the case but he had had enough experience with the Jeremiah situation  to know nothing would stop her.

He did look like he wanted to have her escorted out of the jail after she dented a table in front of Peter Thompson as they questioned him about Alex’s whereabouts. He didn’t have to ask, she stormed out ahead of him. She heard J’onn’s promises that he was telling the truth when he read the man's mind. She couldn’t argue about that but it wasn’t the answer she wanted and every second they failed to find Alex, the closer her sister…she couldn’t think about it.

Maggie pulled her aside, composed and serious. “Losing control is not going to help us find Alex. It’s only going to get her killed.”

Kara’s jaw clenched tight and as much as she wanted to rebuff, Maggie was right. She had to keep her head to find her sister but anger surged through her body and she couldn’t keep it all in. She hadn’t felt as close to the rage the red kryptonite brought her until now.

Winn’s call sent her over the edge and she flew right through the door of what looked like an abandoned house, in Midvale. She stood in the entrance for only a second. “Alex!”

She ran further into the house. “Alex? Alex!”

A glow in a room ahead of her called to her and she directed herself that way. She was met with a desk of screens showing footage of her sister, alone, caged. “Alex! Alex!”

Rick thought he could surprise her but she swiveled at the first sound of another person in the room, lifting him up by the collar. “Where is my sister?” 

He was much calmer than she had hoped. All he did was repeat his demands but there was no way she could break Thompson out of jail. And even if she found a way, she would never do it.

The smug look on his face disgusted her and she threw him into the wall. He grunted as he fell to the floor. She turned back to the screens, watching Alex pound against the walls and yell for help to no avail. Her body was shaking with fury and fear and something in her wanted to do away with the man that stood in front of her but that wasn’t what she did. That wasn’t her way of dealing justice. She didn’t make the decision whether someone lived or died.

She was trying to hold back tears knowing he would take it as the first sign of weakness and give up on her immediately. As long as she kept him believing that there was a possible way to get his father out of prison, Alex would stay alive. The only thing she could do next was plead.

“Please, just let me talk to her.” Her voice wasn’t strong and she wanted to wipe the smile off of his face but he agreed. All he did was let her hear Alex’s voice. She barely got to talk to her, to find out if she was okay, to find out where she was.

“Tell me, where she is,” Kara demanded in a low voice. Rick cocked an eyebrow at her. “Tick. Tock.” 

She stepped forward, her eyes lighting up, ready to attack. He just smiled again. “You won’t hurt me. Because then you’ll never find her.”

Kara’s clenched her fists tight together. She couldn’t tell if he was lying or not. Maybe Alex was close, nearby, and he was playing with her, teasing her to see how far he could get. But she couldn’t take the chance in case he had a failsafe set, ready to finish the job if anything happened to him. She did the only thing she could do. She grabbed him before he could comprehend what was happening and flew him to the DEO.

He was blocking J’onn from reading his mind, which even J'onn didn't have an answer for. So, it was up to them to interrogate through the normal route. Maggie went first, which everyone was surprised J’onn allowed. Kara stood in the back of the room, arm’s crossed, trying to be the picture of impending doom that she wanted Rick to feel as he was questioned.

The one thing she couldn’t understand was what had happened to Rick. She had known him from when they went to school together. He had almost dated Alex and he had always seemed like a nice guy. She hadn’t known him well though so it was all speculation. When he started talking about how he had watched them all, invaded their privacy, that he used her want to save people against her was when she realized that she and Alex were both better off having stayed far away from him.

She wouldn’t write off his story of abuse. She empathized with that; she wouldn’t wish it upon anyone. But he wanted to use it as an excuse for the actions he took and she would never abide by that. Nothing justified how he had used Alex and was now trying to use her. How he had stuck his nose in where it shouldn’t have ever been. How he had threatened a life and threatened a loss that would cause Kara to crumble completely. She didn’t know how to live without Alex; she had never had to and she never wanted to have to. Because she really didn’t know if she could come back from that.

Peter Thompson wasn’t innocent. He was guilty of murder. But that didn’t matter to Rick; nothing mattered but his own selfish cause. There was no justification for getting Peter out of jail. There was no way to turn the story. She couldn’t go down that road. Besides, Maggie was a cop and she worked for the DEO, it wasn’t even on the table.

“Free my dad or your sister dies.” Her eyes narrowed and her lips pursed and before she could even think about what she was about to do, the table was flipped over and she held Rick by his throat against the wall. He kept wanting to repeat those words as if she hadn’t heard him the first ten times. Her hands were shaking. She could see his mouth moving but she couldn’t hear the words. She wasn’t even looking at him anymore but past him. She could vaguely hear Maggie calling her.

Kara loosened her grip and he dropped to the floor. Her leg twitched with the urge to land a kick against his stomach but she turned and walked away instead.

 

J’onn went in, disguised as Peter. She was almost hopeful but Rick saw right through the façade. Maggie went back in, she couldn’t help herself. But Kara could not face him again, she had to stay away.

She took refuge on the balcony of the DEO and pulled out her phone, needing to hear a voice that was actually comforting. “Kara, hi, I was just about to call you to see what you –“

“Alex was kidnapped, Lena.” Her voice cracked, “I need you.”

“I’m coming.”

The call ended and Kara stuffed her phone back in her pocket looking out at the city. She closed her eyes, focusing her hearing on one voice, one heartbeat.

“What are you doing?” She was startled out of concentration by J’onn but she didn’t open her eyes.

“Listening for her…but I can’t hear anything.” Kara opened her eyes, the city coming back into view. It was too big. “I can do all of these incredible things but there’s nothing I can do to fix this. And I could lose her, J’onn. She could be gone.”

J’onn pulled her into him, an unusual embrace especially in the DEO. But she didn’t care; she supposed this was an extenuating circumstance. Kara clung to his shirt, no doubt wetting the fabric with her tears. Her words were muffled but she knew he could hear her. “Maggie was right. I went after him immediately. I don’t think first and it made things worse.”

“You only did what you thought was best to protect your sister. No one can blame you for that.”

Kara stepped back, looking him in the eyes. She wiped her eyes and tried to keep the tears in. “I’m scared.”

“So am I.” Hearing that from J’onn should have erased any hope she had but instead, it speared her forward. This man cared about Alex almost as much as she did; they were family. They were both scared and she felt solidarity in that and she could see the determination in his eyes that they would not stop until Alex was safe.

“J’onn!” Winn rushed to the doorway seeming surprised to see Kara. “We found Alex!”

“You did?” Kara grabbed onto him but he was already running away. “We got a ping from her tracker. She’s not far.”

Kara took off to the interrogation rooms where she had left Maggie. She barged into the room. “We found Alex!”

Maggie’s chair scraped against the floor. “What? How?”

Kara glared at Rick, sending all the animosity she harbored toward him in one look. “I guess you underestimated my sister.”

She waved at Maggie who seemed stuck, uncertain between them. “Let’s go." 

Rick sat back in his chair. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”

She ignored him but heard him say, after she left, “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Maggie chased her into the hall. “Stop! Kara, stop! He’s not acting like someone who just lost. He didn’t flinch. He expected this.”

Kara threw her hands out. “We can’t listen to him! Every minute we wait matters.”

“I want to get her back as bad as you do but we’ve gotta get it right,” Maggie pleaded.

Kara shut her eyes and shook her head slowly. She couldn’t sit back and do nothing; this was their first lead and she had to follow it through. “I have to do this.”

She turned on her heels.

“I care about her too!”

Kara paused for one second but didn’t turn to face Maggie. “I know you do. And I understand if you can’t do this, but I have to.”

Maggie didn’t try to stop her again.

Winn rattled off the coordinates and she ended up in an empty warehouse. “Alex!”

Nothing. She ran, her boots clicking against the concrete. “Alex!”

Still nothing. She used her x-ray vision, scanning the walls and the floor for secret rooms or floors. There was one part that varied from the rest but she couldn’t see through it because it was covered with lead. She grabbed at the metal, bending and pulling it back to give her space to enter. She threw the floor covering to the side with a smile on her face that immediately turned into a frown. There was no room, no secret passage, just a square hole in the ground. Inside was a laptop with the video of her sister, trapped in her cage, a timer with a countdown, and a message that read. “Now you have four.”

The clock sped down fast from the twenty hours she had been given to the four she had left. “No, no, no, no, no.”

Through the screen she could see Alex stumble back as water poured into the tank. Her sister scrambled to stop the bursting pipe but the water still rose. Kara couldn’t catch her breath. “Oh my god.”

 

Kal was there when she returned. She hadn’t expected him to be there, this wasn’t his fight. But there he was, waiting for her, wrapping her in a hug as tight as she needed because he couldn’t break and neither could she. “It’s going to be okay.”

She pushed away from him in disgust when she heard those words. They were the words everyone said because they were supposed to bring comfort. They were almost never true and in this situation, when Alex’s life was on the line and it was a very real possibility that she would die, those words were a blatant lie. “You can’t say that. You can’t say that about this because you don’t know.” 

She was doing her best to keep her voice down. He wasn’t trying to calm her down or interrupt. He stood and waited and listened. Kara gestured between them. “Kryptonian senses. The ones that can pick out each beat of breath, each throb of blood. All of these senses, all of this sound. When it gets too much and it flurries around your brain until you can’t even speak, can’t hear, can’t think – is there one person for whom the whole world goes quiet? For whom all things are still?”

Clark nodded as if there was; Kara wasn’t convinced she believed him. “That is my sister. I would give anything, everything, to protect her. But the world has gone quiet because I can’t hear her.”

“Kara?” At the sound of her voice, Kara turned and collapsed into Lena’s arms. Lena stroked circles against her back as she buried her head in Lena’s neck. Lena didn’t say anything; she didn’t need to, there was nothing anyone could say. Kal promised to stay and offered his help before leaving them be. 

Lena pushed her back, thumbs wiping against Kara’s cheeks. “I have never met two people as dedicated as the Danvers sisters. You are so strong and Alex is so strong. She believes in you and she needs you to believe in yourself.”

“Stay?” Kara asked. She had things to do but she needed Lena to be there when she was done. She needed a face that wasn’t working on the case, someone that hadn’t known what they had all been going through for hours. She needed someone who would look at her and not see her as the tool to complete a mission successfully. She needed Lena so that when she looked into her eyes, she could see who she needed to be.

 

Kara had the video of Alex up on a computer when Maggie burst through the doors. “Alex?”

“Maggie? Maggie, I need to talk to you. Alone.” Kara crossed her arms and Maggie looked at her, not for permission but to gauge reaction. Kara gave her none. Maggie should have the chance to talk to her girlfriend and they didn’t have much time, it was now or never.

Maggie disappeared into the hallway. The problem was then she disappeared entirely. No one could find her or even say the last time they had seen her. The smirk on Rick’s face was answer enough for Kara. She growled, “What did you say to her?”

 

When she got to the prison, she scanned the building finding Maggie pulling Thompson along the halls. They were moving fast. She stormed the prison and came upon the duo just as Maggie blew out a camera with an alien gun that obviously belonged to Alex. They came to a halt when their eyes alighted on Supergirl. “You know Alex wouldn’t want you to do this.”

“All I care about is getting her back alive. And I should have come with you last time. I thought words would work but they didn’t.”

“Punching didn’t either.” Kara turned to Thompson. “Your son got her to do this. She tried, we all tried, to get him to change his mind. We wanted him to understand.”

Thompson wasn’t making eye contact with her. Instead, he was studying Maggie. Supergirl started walking toward him, crossing her arms. Setting her hands on her hips reminded her too much of Alex and she needed to be centered; Maggie had been right about that. “Your son uses the words ‘rescue’ and ‘love.’ And I can understand those. But if he kills Alex Danvers, he can never be rescued. Even if he doesn’t think it will affect him, he will have to live with that and the consequences for the rest of his life.”

She was close to him now and though hesitant, he looked at her. “Your list of wrongdoings isn’t short. But there is one thing you can be proud of. You took Rick in when he needed it and gave him a father. You were there for him and you need to be there for him again.” 

Maggie’s phone beeped and she took the same desperate inhale as Kara did. Alex was out of time. There was nothing more to do, so Kara begged, “Please. Please. Is there anywhere she could be?”

He barely got the words out before Kara had whisked Maggie up and flew off. It was a garage and Kara kicked down the door. They rushed in and around stacks of lumber and a dismantled tractor. She came to a halt, all breath leaving her body. Before her was a tank filled with water and Alex was floating underneath it, a few bubbles breaking the surface. For a split second, she thought she was too late and there was nothing she could do. Her worst nightmare was laid out before her. She was stripped down to her barest self: an orphan and a refugee. 

She couldn’t take her eyes off the tank. Alex had given her whole life to Kara. She had sacrificed everything for Kara to feel comfortable and assimilate on Earth and Kara slowly realized in that second that Alex only had one other thing to give: her life. And what Kara was seeing was the result of the decision Alex made to do just that. She had sacrificed everything yet again. Alex had Maggie, she had a family again, there was still hope for Jeremiah. She had just recently become the happiest Kara had ever seen her.

And in a flash, in those two seconds, she relived the worst parts of her life. Krypton exploding all over again, her mother clasping the necklace around her neck and waving goodbye, Astra dying in her arms. With Alex floating, lifeless before her, she saw her world ending yet again. Alex had promised her she would never leave and Kara was going to hold her to that promise. 

Those two seconds ripped apart her truth but she remembered who she was, she remembered Lena’s words. She knew she was strong and she could not give up any hope for Alex.

She sped forward, colliding a fist with the glass, which broke on contact, water streaming out as she took to the air to avoid the deluge. Alex rolled out onto the floor coughing. “Alex! Alex! I've got you.”

Kara knelt next to her, scooping her body into her arms. Maggie appeared at Alex’s head, holding on as tightly as she could. Alex was heaving, shivering, grabbing onto them as if she thought they would disappear. Kara clasped her hand as Maggie kissed her forehead. “You held on.”

Alex smiled as best she could and nodded, her voice quaking with the cold, “I held on.”

They were all a mess of tears, holding onto one another, breathing frantically but together. She had her sister back. She had done it. She hadn’t failed Alex.

 

She had stayed by Alex’s side until her sister had thrown her out of the room. She was asking too many questions or apologizing too much or as Alex put it, “You’re being insufferable, Kara. I preferred the tank.”

Kara smiled at the jest. Only an hour ago, she had worried she would never hear her sister’s teasing again. Most of the time she would have made a disgruntled face or shown her distaste by storming from the room, but for now, she leaned down, kissed Alex’s cheek and did as she was bid.

Maggie had stayed back just a little bit, watching over Kara’s shoulders. Kara squeezed her hand when she left and Maggie took over. When she walked through the doors of the medical rooms, Lena was there with takeout and a smile. She leaned down to catch Lena’s lips with her own and all the tension left her body. She fell onto the bench in the hallway, her head falling onto Lena’s shoulder, Lena's hair tickling her face. “I don’t know what to say or what to ask, but you need to eat.”

Kara grabbed the bag, sitting up suddenly and ripping open the paper. She groaned at the sight of fries and shoved them into her mouth. It took her less than a minute to eat the whole order. There was one last fry and she held it out to Lena. “Want it?”

“I was going to ask if you were okay but now I know you are definitely not,” she said but took the fry anyway.

Kara shrugged and looked through the window where she could see Maggie stroking Alex’s hair. “I don’t know what I’m feeling. Relief of course but I almost lost her.”

Lena was rubbing circles against her back, listening. “And I always knew I could. That’s why I was so mad when I found out that she had lied to me about working for the DEO. But I don’t think it was ever real until now. It was actually happening and didn’t ever hit me this hard before” – her chin quivered and Lena smiled sadly at her – “I can’t live without her.”

Lena pulled Kara into her, kissing her temple. “You won’t have to. She’s a fighter and so are you. And through this, you saw how much everyone loves her. She’s not alone.”

Kara was looking at her hands but Lena pulled her chin up to meet her eyes. “And you aren’t either.”

Kara closed the distance, pressing their lips together. Someone cleared their throat. “Sorry, don’t mean to interrupt.”

Kara rolled her eyes. “Yes, you do.”

“I was just coming to get you because Mon-El wanted to tell you something.” Kara jumped up, worried, her mind instantly going to Rhea, but Kal shook his head. “I don’t think it’s anything important or about work. Sorry, I should have started with that.”

Kara couldn't really think of anything Mon-El would have to say that wasn't about the case involving his mother. She sighed heavily. “Yeah, you think.”

Kara reached back for Lena’s hand, feeling the warmth as their fingers interlocked. It was a small comfort but it was all she needed.

 

“She refused to stay in bed.” Maggie’s voice jolted them all and Kara turned to see her holding Alex up. She wasn’t surprised; Alex was as stubborn as they get.

Kara rushed to her side. “Are you alright?”

“Yes, I promise,” Alex assured her.

“I knew you’d be fine.” Lena smiled and reached a hand out to squeeze Alex’s.

“You did good, Alex,” J’onn said with a look of pride. He looked at Maggie and smiled. “You too Maggie.”

He pulled them both into a hug and Kara could see Alex’s relief. She could also see the surprise when Kal appeared. “You didn’t need to be here.”

“You’re right. I wasn’t much help," - he smiled warmly, - "but I wanted to be.”

Alex nodded at him and Kara wondered if he was trying to make up for the wrong he had done in her eyes.

There was a jangling of handcuffs and Winn walked in followed by Rick and two agents. He smirked. “Oh, you survived.”

“Hey!” Winn yelled, defensively. “You do not get to talk to her.”

Alex looked over her shoulder at J’onn. “What are you going to do to him?”

“What I have to. Protecting the identity of Supergirl and the DEO is what's important.” They all knew that meant a mind wipe. Alex nodded in agreement. “Before you do that…”

She turned back toward Rick so fast that no one saw it coming and all of a sudden he was bent over, clutching his nose, red seeping through his fingers. Kara’s jaw dropped and she looked at Maggie who looked surprised but extremely proud. Kal and Winn were sniggering and J’onn looked unfazed. Alex was tense and serious, staring down Rick. “Make sure he remembers that.”

Maggie pulled Kara aside and tried to apologize for going to the prison but Kara shut her down. “It doesn’t matter. I wanted to so many times –“

“But you didn’t.”

“You did the right thing, Maggie. That was all you. I just reminded you of exactly the same thing you tried to make me understand."

“We made a pretty good team.”

Kara looked back over at Alex. “It’s not too hard when we love her so much.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heads up! I am going to be in the process of moving for the next couple of days so there's a possibility the fic won't be updated until Sunday.


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaaaaaaand we're back!

“KARA, don’t touch that!” Kara’s eyes widened and she jumped in surprise, holding the pan. Lena was reaching out, slapping it out of her hands and they both watched as it crashed to the floor. The contents of the pan did not even move; they were caked onto the sides.

Kara spluttered, “What was that for?”

“You can’t pull things out of the oven with your bare hands, Kara. That’s one of the first things people teach children.” Kara stared at her for a very long time, waiting for her to realize what was so ridiculous about that statement but Lena was doing the same, waiting for a reaction from her.

Kara stuck her hands out in Lena’s face and waved them around. “Fireproof, babe.”

Lena cocked her head to the side. “Did you just call me ‘babe’?”

“Yeah…do you not like it?”

Lena reached out, pulling herself into Kara. Kara automatically wrapped her arms around Lena. “Well, I definitely don’t hate it."

Kara smiled into Lena’s kiss and felt Lena doing that same. But then Lena was pulling out of the embrace with a serious look on her face. “I have something to tell you and you might hate it.”

Kara crossed her arms and tilted her head, listening.

“Jack’s in town.”

Kara’s mouth formed an ‘o’ but she didn’t actually speak. In her mind, Jack never seemed real; he was a former figure in Lena’s life that never had real permanence. Ever since Lena had first told her about him, she had thought she’d never have to deal with it. But that was only wishful thinking; she knew how much he had meant to Lena at the time, she couldn’t just throw that away easily.

So Kara put on a cheery face and said, “That’s great, are you going to see him?”

“You think you can fool me, Kara Zor-El?” Lena sighed.

Kara stepped back, picking up a rag to clean up the mess. “What are you talking about?”

“Your face. I can read you. You’re not fooling anyone. Good try.” Lena was watching her as she picked up pieces of the destroyed cake. The pan clattered against the counter and she dropped it there. She dumped the cake pieces in the trashcan and slammed the lid shut.

“I don’t know how I’m supposed to react.”

“However you want.”

“But I was supposed to like Maggie right away when I was really unsure. And when Winn had a crush on me, I was supposed to let him down easily when I really just wanted to be mad at him. And when I found out James had a girlfriend, I was supposed to let it go even though I wanted to scream. So, I don’t know what I’m supposed to do here because you haven’t told me how to feel about it yet.”

“Kara, you’ve always been able to react however you felt necessary. No one has that kind of control over you.”

Kara wet a towel and wiped the stickiness off the floor. She understood what Lena meant and she made her own decisions most of the time but when it came to love and romantic relationships and other people, there had always been a strict yes or no to how people wanted her to be. And because she wanted everyone to be happy, she had done what was best for them. So, Lena was wrong because there was a right way to respond and Kara didn’t think what her brain was telling her to do was the right way.

“What do you want?” Kara asked her because then she would know what she could say.

Lena shook her head, lips pursed. “I am getting an honest answer out of you before I say anything else because I know you are just going to cater to whatever I say.”

Kara looked at Lena through her eyelashes and grumbled, “I’ve never been irritated with your intelligence until now.”

“I know you, Kara. You always put yourself second. I think you’ve done one thing for yourself this entire year.”

“And what was that?” Kara leaned against the counter, tossing the rag into the sink.

“What did you call it? Superhero fight club? That.”

“I don’t want you to see Jack –“

“There it is.”

Lena smiled but Kara put a hand up. “No, wait. I don’t want you to but I can’t dictate that, Lena. I don’t get to say whom you can and cannot see. That’s selfish and unfair. So, you don’t get to listen to that and you get to do whatever you want and I know you’d like to see him.”

“You’re not still afraid about us, right?” Kara was caught off guard by the question. “That’s not why you don’t want me to see him? Because I care for Jack but not like that, not anymore.”

“No, we talked about that,” was Kara’s response because even though they had and she agreed and wholeheartedly believed, insecurities still peeked through sometimes.

“Good. I just wanted to make sure.” Lena pressed her against the counter and Kara couldn’t help but smile. Lena stretched her neck upwards and Kara met her lips with a kiss. “You’re the only one that I want.”

“Did you just -?”

“Accidently reference _Grease_? Yes. Don’t make it a thing.”

“Oh, I’m definitely making it a thing,” Kara joked.

“I want to see, Jack,” Lena said, which was what Kara had already known, “but I want you to come with me. I don’t think I could do it alone and I don’t want to have to.”

Kara kissed Lena’s forehead. “You never have to do anything alone.”

 

“Alex, I really want to kill this guy right now,” Kara growled under her breath into the com.

“No you don’t and Lena will understand.” Alex was back to work. J'onn had wanted her to take a couple days off but she had refused. So, he hadn't let her do any fieldwork and instead, ordered her to stay in the DEO. She was coping as well as she could and for Alex, that was better than anyone else Kara knew. They didn't talk about it; Alex didn't want to. She was afraid and nervous and though Kara thought it was ridiculous, she was embarrassed. After all her training, she said she shouldn't have been caught off guard. No one should have been able to capture her. 

She also didn't think Rick and Peter Thompson were the end of that story; she told Kara that she thought there was definitely more to it. Kara was sure she had mentioned the same thing to Maggie but no one else knew of her hunch. But there were no connections they could make to anything else. There were too many strange variables. J'onn not being able to read Rick's mind. The fact that Rick got his hands on an abandoned house, a vacant warehouse, and somehow managed to install a tank in an unused garage. It wasn't a one-man job.

But they were stuck not knowing what to do and so they were back to work.

“Why do they always think they can outrun me when I can fly?” She surged ahead, scooping the man up with one arm, ignoring his disgruntled yells. He wasn’t an alien, just another guy holding up a convenience store. She dropped him off at the police station.

“Is Maggie there?”

Kara looked around but Alex’s girlfriend was nowhere to be seen. “No, but I’m late now so I’ll see you later.”

“Tell Lena I say hi.”

With a spin in the alleyway near the restaurant, Kara changed out of the suit and honed in to find Lena and Jack in the restaurant. It wasn’t difficult, she could find Lena in seconds.

“You look stunning by the way.” Kara’s eyes narrowed when she heard that line from whom she could only assume was Jack. It didn’t take him long to try to swoop back in and Kara was pretty sure Lena told him about her when they set up dinner. Strike one already and she had yet to meet him. 

She stomped into the restaurant, so focused she almost bypassed the host who stepped out from behind her podium to stop her. “Miss, excuse me, do you have a reservation?”

Kara shook herself out of it and smiled. “Yes, actually, the other party is already here. Luthor.”

“Oh, yes, right this way.” There was not any surprise in the woman’s voice as there had been the first couple of times that Kara had shown up to restaurants to meet with Lena. Since the news had gotten out about them being a couple and her face had been plastered across magazines, there was no longer surprise that Lena Luthor would be meeting with, well, her. People had been very skeptical of her beforehand and it felt nice not to be scrutinized. 

Kara saw her before the host even motioned to the table. Lena was sitting at a far-off table in a bright red dress that was illuminated by candlelight. Kara felt her own heart spike upon seeing Lena and held a hand out to the host. “I see them, thank you.”

As Kara got closer, her face grew grave. She could hear Jack’s words and she did not like them one bit. “The morning after you left, I realized I made a terrible mistake. I should have gone with you. I’m no good without you.”

Lena squirmed in her seat. “Jack.”

He put his hands out. “I didn’t mean anything by it save that I just wanted you to know that I messed up and I know that. I’ve seen all the headlines: "L-Corp CEO New Romance." I'm excited to meet her.”

“Lena!” Kara said, announcing her presence so she didn’t sneak up on them.

“Speaking of, here she is.” Lena moved to get up but Kara leaned down instead, kissing Lena hello. She might have let it last a little longer than normal.

The normal pleasantries took place and Lena and Jack began discussing his next breakthrough. It sounded like the project he had been working on with Lena before she left. Kara listened and watched them interact, falling into the comfortable pattern of old friends. Kara mostly watched Lena’s face. It lit up like it always did when she was talking about science. Kara really wished that was something they could do together but the knowledge evaded her and so she listened while Lena spoke, but she could never contribute. Seeing her with Jack, Kara realized just how amazing they must have been as partners. They seemed formidable, working through problems as they relayed information to each other like they weren’t exploring the intricacies of bioengineering.

“I wouldn’t have gotten there if I hadn’t been thinking of you.” Lena was taken aback by the sudden change of direction and they were all silent for a few seconds. Jack was staring at Lena if he was looking for some affirmation of his feelings and Lena looked horrified that he would have dared bring it up.

Kara opened her mouth, blinked a couple times and then said, “Anyway, um –“

“Jack, you can’t do that. You don’t have any right to do that. Especially now,” Lena said in a voice that she hadn’t used all night.

Jack sat back in his chair and took a few more seconds to himself. He nodded. “You’re right. Kara, I’m sorry. But as you know, I haven’t spoken with Lena since she left for National City and there are a few things that I have wanted to say.”

“Maybe you should have said them before I left if they were so important.”

Kara fidgeted with her hands in her lap. Despite the fact that she didn’t want Lena to see Jack in the first place, when Lena had told her that she wanted company, Kara would have never said no. But, she had had an uncomfortable feeling about the whole thing from the start and what was unfolding in front of her, was exactly what she had been worried about.

“You never gave me a chance.”

“You never called.” Lena looked away and then back. “Jack, if you’re worried I hate you, I don’t. That’s not even possible after how many years we spent together. But if you expect us to go back to that, then you’re mistaken and you’ve wasted your time.”

“I’m that guy now, aren’t I?” Lena nodded without sympathy and Jack grimaced. Kara didn’t feel like there was anything for her to say or that she had any part in it. Whatever was left between them was something they were going to have to figure out. Lena had assured her there was nothing and looked confused that Jack had said anything about it at all, so Kara was reassured in that at least.

The look on Jack’s face was pained. He took a long swig of wine and forced a smile. Lena raised an eyebrow and that smile softened into something more real. He looked over to Kara. “You are very lucky.”

Kara reached over and took Lena’s hand. “Oh, you don’t even know.”

 

Lena felt the need to apologize later that night about putting Kara through the dinner. She hadn't suspected Jack's true intentions and knowing them, would never had agreed to meet. "He's a great guy but he's not thinking clearly."

Kara leaned over, dragging her eyes away from the television and kissed Lena's temple. "It's hard to think clearly around you."

"You're so cheesy, sometimes."

Kara shrugged, popping a piece of popcorn in her mouth. Lena squeezed her arm. "But I'm serious. That was completely uncalled for. It was disrespectful."

"Lena, he just wanted to talk. And maybe you do need to see each other alone. Work out all the kinks."

"I don't know if I should," Lena responded.

"That's up to you. But don't throw away years of partnership and friendship over this if you would like to work with him again. It's not worth it in the long run."

"And you'd be okay with that?"

Kara offered her the popcorn bowl. "You act like I'm a jealous monster. I was worried. Now I'm not. We talked it through. I just want you to be happy and he's someone that makes you happy. Anyone in that restaurant could see the look on your face."

Lena nuzzled her head onto Kara's shoulder. "I didn't mean it like that" - she sighed heavily - "I guess it's just something I have to think about. I haven't since I left. I didn't want to. But maybe I should now."

Kara hummed and turned her attention back to the television. Lena cuddled further into her side.

 

There were quakes around the city throughout the day and no one could trace the source. The DEO couldn’t find anything alien related and they were not being picked up on any radar that could prove they happened naturally. But each one was larger than the last. Kara’s phone rang and she answered it to Winn’s scared voice, “Kara, something about these quakes are affecting people. I think they’re aliens. Some sort telekinetic power is being amped up.” 

Kara relayed the information to J’onn but there was nothing they could do until they found the source. “Go to work. If we need you, we’ll call.”

But they never called her and when James showed up to CatCo halfway through the day with a young boy trailing behind him, she couldn’t help but hesitate. “Marcus this is my friend Kara. Kara this is Marcus.”

She shot James a look and he returned with one that said, “I’ll explain later.” Kara plastered a smile on her face and reached her hand out. “Hey, Marcus, how are you doing?”

The boy just stared at her, his eyes wide. He kept his hands shoved deep into his jacket pockets. Kara pulled her hand away and nodded instead. “Well, it was nicet to meet you. Bye, Marcus.” 

Every time she passed James’ office throughout the day, she smiled. She saw them sitting on the couch, James showing Marcus how his camera worked and how to reassemble it. They were sharing milkshakes and fries. The one thing that Kara did notice was that Marcus was never smiling. He looked like he was interested and listening but also like his mind was far away.

 **Sent (2:34pm)** _Who is Marcus?_

 **Alex (2:35pm)** _His mother disappeared this morning in one of the quakes. James was on the scene and saw her use some sort of telekinetic power. She didn’t seem to be in control. That’s how we found Marcus so James is taking care of him until we find his mother_

 **Sent (2:36pm)** _Does he have those powers?_

Kara didn’t even need to ask because when she looked back through the office windows, she saw Marcus moving a marble around the puzzle board on James’ desk, using nothing but his concentration. Alex’s response was affirmative.

Kara leaned against a desk and watched James and Marcus through the glass. James was different. He was more at ease and he looked taken with the kid. This was the James she remembered before he decided to become Guardian; the one who protected people without feeling the need to use his fists.

All of a sudden, CatCo began to shake and Kara grabbed ahold of the desk to steady herself. Inside the office, James jumped back as Marcus stood up, his body rigid and his eyes unfocused. They glowed purple.

The windows exploded behind Kara, sending glass spiraling throughout the office. Everyone was running and screaming, hiding under desks as the television screens sparked and exploded. The wind blew through the broken windows, papers swirling everywhere making it hard to see.

Kara ripped open her shirt, not worried about hiding at the moment when the building felt like it was coming down around her. With a twirl she became Supergirl. When she looked back, she found James on the floor and Marcus lifting off the ground. She took flight, grabbing Marcus out of the air and flying him out of CatCo. Spinning around she held the struggling boy and watched CatCo as the building cracked and splintered, the damage spreading.

She racked her brain for a solution but with Marcus still spinning out of control and no way to help him, there wasn’t much she could do for anyone. When the boy went limp in her arms, she silently thanked Rao. But he soon awoke, scrabbling at her arms, trying to get hold as he realized how far up in the air he was. She squeezed tighter. “It’s okay. I’ve got you. You are going to be okay.”

The promise was shallow; Kara didn’t know if anything was going to be okay or not.

 

The only thing she could do was take him into the DEO. They stuffed him in a cell despite her objections. She explained to J’onn and Alex that it wasn’t his fault and he wasn’t in control but J’onn’s response was simply, “For the time being, he is dangerous and will be treated as such.”

“He’s a little boy!”

“Who does not know how to control his powers. That’s final.”

“We can’t treat him like that.”

“Kara, I don’t think he did anything wrong. I think he is a victim and I’m starting to think his mother is as well, wherever she is. That does not mean I can risk innocent lives by letting him out.”

“Fine, then I’m ending this now.” She flew out of the DEO, not sure where exactly she was going but she had to find the source. They needed to be stopped; things needed to return to normal. She called Lena when she was canvassing the city. “Lena? Are you okay?”

“What are you talking about?”

Kara pulled herself to a stop in the sky. “The quakes? The last one was rough and I wanted to make sure you were safe.”

“Kara, I have no idea what you mean. Are you still in National City?”

“Yeah, there has been some sort of attacks all day long. Where are you? Haven’t you heard the news?”

“I’ve been in the lab all day working on this project. We’ve been running tests and it’s finally ready,” Lena explained excitedly. “My anonymous partner is finally becoming known. They are coming in a few minutes to see our progress.”

“Did you just start tests today?” Kara questioned, a thought coming to mind. It could just be a coincidence but with the news that Mon-El had seen his mother in National City and the abrupt occurrence of this anonymous partner, Kara couldn’t help but see a connection. She was surprised she didn’t see it sooner. It was so obvious now.

“Yes. Trial runs started today.”

Kara headed back to the DEO immediately. “Lena, I know you don’t want to hear this and you may not believe me, but trust me. You know I’ve had a bad feeling about this project from the beginning.”

“Yes, Kara, but everything has been going very well,” Lena responded.

“I think it’s gone alright until now,” Kara said, landing on the balcony of the DEO. She motioned Alex to listen to the conversation she was having.

“What are you talking about?” Lena questioned.

Kara tried to set up the situation for Alex. “Lena, I’m sure whatever you’re working on was supposed to be for good but I don’t think your partner has the same mindset. I think its Rhea of Daxam.”

There was silence on the other end of the phone.

“Do you trust me?”

Alex was already assembling a team as Kara waited for a response.

“Yes.”

“Then please do not meet with her alone. We’re coming.”

“Kara,” Lena sounded scared, “it’s too late. She’s here.”

“I’m coming.”

 

Supergirl had grabbed Mon-El on the way out, hoping that maybe they’d be given another chance before Rhea implemented whatever her plan was. J’onn had joined them. They were the three who could get there the fastest and Alex was bringing back up.

They crashed through the roof, plaster and concrete falling around them. The place was empty, everyone scattered except for Rhea, a few Daxamite guards and Lena who was backed up against a wall, begging for her life. 

“Lena!” Supergirl yelled. Through computer screens, Kara could see a large circular structure. She didn’t know what it was for but it seemed to be what Rhea was after.

“What are you doing, mother?” Mon-El commanded when they landed.

She responded simply, “Bringing our people here. Saving them. Taking Earth.”

Supergirl flew at her, crashing into a pillar. J’onn came to her aid only to be kicked full-force by Rhea, sending him flying across the room and crashing into a set of metal stairs. It took Supergirl’s attention away from Rhea for a moment too long and the woman switched their positions, slamming Kara into the pillar.

The guards had taken care of Mon-El, holding him between them as he struggled to get free. A gun slid across the floor and out of reach.

J’onn came at them again but Rhea pulled a shining red jewel out of her pocket and he stopped in his tracks. Kara stumbled back, staring, confused at J’onn’s reaction. “What is that?”

“A little gift from the White Martians. He’s going to have a nice little walk down nightmare lane.” J’onn slowly transformed back into his alien self and dropped to the floor, seemingly lifeless.

Supergirl looked on with horror and determination and threw a punch at Rhea who blocked it. She smiled horribly and Kara groaned, falling to the floor. Something was not right. Rhea stood above her, looking down. “I could agree that you might have been able to beat me in a fight. But I have tricks of my own.”

Rhea stretched out her arms and Kara watched as the fluorescent green of what could only be kryptonite, flowing under her skin. “And I know a Kryptonian’s weakness." 


	24. Chapter 24

Tears were streaming down Lena’s face and Kara was struggling to stay conscious. Rhea had her hand on Kara’s arm and the queen’s veins glowed as the kryptonite streamed through her body. Rhea was a walking weapon against Kryptonians; her body poisoned by kryptonite to the point where she carried it within her.

Kara had her teeth gritted against the agony, refusing to cry out. To give Rhea that satisfaction. She wanted to save Lena from having to hear her pain. Two of Rhea’s Daxamite guards had their weapons directed at Lena while the other two restrained Mon-El. Rhea tsked. “Oh, Lena, I had more faith in you. I thought out of everyone on Earth, you would be the easiest to turn against the Supers.”

Rhea’s smile was malicious. “I just misinterpreted how to use you.”

Her finger lifted Kara’s chin up and Kara sneered up at Rhea's eyes as they glinted with ideas less than heroic. “So, you either power the portal up or I take out the Kryptonian here.”

Lena was looking at Kara, the beautiful face contorted in fear. “I’m sorry.”

“Lena,” Kara tried to speak, her voice tired, “Don’t.”

Kara was pleading and Lena was asking for forgiveness. “I’m so sorry, Kara.”

Kara’s life wasn’t worth more than anyone else’s. The portal would bring about Earth’s destruction. She made her voice as stable as she could. “Lena.”

Lena’s eyes were glistening and she tore her eyes from Kara’s to glare at Rhea. Her voice was laced with revulsion and she spat the words. “You have greatly underestimated me.”

Lena ripped something off of the wall and with the screech Rhea let out, Kara could only think it was a pertinent part of the portal system. Rhea let go as she had promised. Kryptonite surged into Kara’s body. Her cells felt like they were exploding. Her entire body was on fire.

The guards were fast but Rhea had also run forward and the portal whirred to life as she struggled and overtook Lena who was knocked to the ground, seemingly unconscious. 

Screams tore from Kara’s throat and she fell hard against the floor, her body writhing against the aluminum. Her vision went dark. Everything fell silent. She could only think of the pain. She couldn’t remember anything. She couldn’t figure out what was going on. She didn’t even know who she was. There was pressure closing around her and she didn’t know what it was her body was fighting against. She let the relief come.

 

“Little one? Little one, can you hear me?” She blinked. The sun hit her eyes and she blinked a few more times. The beach stretched out in front of her as she lay in the tall grass. The sound of waves crashing against the shore brought her back to something she knew. There was a halo of sun around a head of long brown curls. As her eyes adjusted, she was met with a familiar face. She smiled and sat up. “Aunt Astra.”

The woman smiled down at her. “Your mother sent me to find you. Come, little one.”

Astra stretched a hand out to help her up from the ground. She knew the house that stood in the distance and could see someone standing in the yard. “Kara, darling.”

Allura came up, fixing Kara’s hair around her shoulders. Kara smiled. “Mother.”

“Kara is that you?” she heard Kal-El yell from the screened porch.

Allura nudged her. “Go on.”

She jumped up the stairs into the room where Kal’s voice came from to find him, Alex, Maggie, James, Winn, and Lucy sitting in a circle of chairs around a wicker table. “We’ve been talking and –“

“I bet James that you could take Kal.”

Kara narrowed her eyes. “What does this entail?”

“Arm wrestling.” Alex grinned. Kara laughed. “I don’t know what you bet, James, but Alex has got this one in the bag.”

“Oooooo,” Winn covered his mouth.

She turned to Kal. “Ready, little cousin.”

Astra was standing to the side, amused and Allura entered the room when Kara and Kal faced off over the table. “Do not break Eliza’s table.”

“Please don’t,” Eliza said, bringing in a bowl of snacks. “Also we need no broken bones in this house. Especially Kryptonian ones. I might be a doctor but I can’t perform miracles.”

Kal grasped her hand tightly and Winn stood between them. “Three. Two. One. Go!”

The strain was instant. Winn stood back. “I have a feeling this is gonna take awhile.”

“If James wins, I get half. It was my idea,” Lucy piped up.

He looked at her. “If I lose, you give me half because it was your idea.”

For ten minutes, no one made any progress and Lucy groaned, “This is boring.”

Kal let out a chuckle but it showed what he had been trying to hide. His voice was strained; he was tiring. Kara was too. Going up against someone with her strength wasn’t easy but she was not going to give up no matter how fatigued she felt. She knew she could beat him and she wasn’t going to let Alex lose a bet.

Kal’s hand slammed down on the table, inevitably cracking it. He made the same grimace with gritted teeth that Kara did as they sheepishly looked over to Eliza. She didn’t seem amused, Allura even less so, but said, “Better than broken bones."

“Ha!” Maggie pointed at James who, grumbling, pulled out a few bills from his pocket and handed them over to a smug Alex.

Kara punched Kal on the shoulder. “Gotcha.”

He shrugged. “I’m not really surprised. You’ve always been stronger than me.”

“Always?” Kara said, the word not making sense. Was Kal always there? She didn’t have time to think about it because Jeremiah appeared in the doorway with a tray of cupcakes.

He handed one to Kara. “For the birthday girl. 

She took it, though uncertain. She thought her birthday had just passed but maybe she just lost track of time. He set the rest on the table and they all sang to her. “Blow it out." 

Kara took in a breath and Alex’s hand shot out. “Gently!”

 

About an hour later, Astra leaned down and whispered, “You’ve got someone waiting for you in the kitchen." 

Kara looked around quizzically. Everyone was…and then she noticed the absence and couldn’t stop the smile that spread across her face. Astra nudged her a little and she hopped up, dashing into the kitchen. She grabbed hold of the doorframe to stop herself, not splintering the wood as he had done before. She had done that before…but not here exactly. But if not, then where? It looked the same. But it didn’t matter once she saw Lena, looking exquisite, staring out the window.

“Lena,” she breathed as if she hadn’t been taking in air all day. Lena turned to her. “Hello, darling.” 

Kara rushed over, pulling Lena into her arms, getting a short laugh out of Lena. “Sorry I was late. I had to help my mother.” 

“Your mother?” Kara questioned, pulling back but not letting go.

Lena looked amused. “Yes, my mother. I told you about this. She asked me to help in the garden and I didn’t want to leave her by herself.”

That didn’t sound like Lena’s mother but Kara noticed the dirt on Lena’s neck and rubbed it off with her thumb. Lena looked down. “I came right here. I didn’t have time to change.”

Lena tried to push away, looking horrified. “Oh, I’m all sweaty and dirty. I don’t want you to –“

Kara didn’t care and pulled Lena in for a kiss. Her skin was warm from the sun, her hands pressed into Kara’s back, forcing them even closer, and her lips were soft and gentle and content. She didn’t taste like anything though, which was strange. Lena always tasted like something but what it was, was just out of Kara’s reach. It was on the tip of her tongue but she couldn’t get it. 

Someone cleared their throat from the doorway and Kara jumped back, blushing. Lena looked at the floor. Jeremiah appeared and led Kara’s confused father out of the room. Zor-El looked over his shoulder like he was going to say something or more likely ask an awkward question. When they were gone, Lena pulled her back in and Kara sank into the kiss. It was more hurried like she had to get it in before something happened. 

Kara heard footsteps and broke the kiss again. Alex was smiling. “I was gonna ask what you guys were up to but I get it now.”

Kara reddened again. “Sorry.”

Alex waved her off. “It’s fine.”

She reached out for Kara’s hand. “Come with me.”

“Where are we going?” Kara snaked her arm around Lena’s waist. 

“It’s not real. Come with me.”

“Of course it’s real,” Kara said. “You’re you. I’m me. This is our house" - she looked over at Lena -" And you’re real.”

Lena squeezed Kara's hand with a sad smile. She kissed Kara’s cheek. “You need to go with her.”

“I’m not going to leave you.” 

“You won’t be leaving me, I promise.” 

“Kara, please,” Alex pleaded. “Please come back to me.” 

It all seemed too much like deja-vu. “Take my hand. We need you to come home.” 

“We are –“ but even as she began to say it, Lena disappeared and the very walls around them blurred. Alex was the only thing left. She was still reaching out, pleading. Kara was much too afraid to be alone, so she grabbed Alex’s hand. There was a bright flash –

 

She heaved in a huge breath, pushing up suddenly. She looked around wildly as everything came into focus. There were arms around her, trying to comfort her and a soothing voice. It was deja-vu. But this time there was no Black Mercy. It had just been a dream. 

Kara was on a bed, under sunlamps at the DEO and the face of her sister appeared before her eyes, first fuzzy and finally sharp. It wasn’t the only face that appeared. “Lucy?”

“Oh, thank god, Kara,” Alex said, squeezing her.

Kara couldn’t get her bearings as she tried to stand and fell to the side. Lucy and Alex grabbed on to her. “Thought we lost you there, Supergirl.” 

Lucy was smiling and Kara gave it her best shot. “What are you doing here?” 

Lucy and Alex exchanged a look that didn’t bode well. “Reinforcements. We don’t know exactly where this is headed but it doesn’t look good.” 

Kara narrowed her eyes. “How long was I out? What’s happening?” 

“Come on,” Alex beckoned, “We’ll show you.”

The DEO was swarming with more agents than usual. Kara was looking around for a familiar face. She saw J’onn laid up in a hospital bed. She saw Winn at his computers. She didn’t see Mon-El or Lena, but Alex was whisking her away and there was too much commotion for her to sift through it all. 

She saw it before they even got outside. The sky was full of invading ships, all hovering, waiting to attack. Lucy and Alex stood at her side, hands on their hips as she leaned onto the railing. “They haven’t attacked yet. We don’t know what they’re waiting for at this point.” 

“They haven’t communicated either,” Alex added. “Winn’s been on the lookout but radio silence. Their arrival spread panic across the city but ever since” – Alex motioned vaguely at the sky – “this has been it.” 

“We won’t attack if there’s a possibility for peaceful surrender.”

“But we are coming up with a plan.” 

They exchanged the look across Kara once more. She grew suspicious. “Alex, where’s Lena?”

Her sister’s face became taut. “We’re coming up with a plan. I promise.”

 

She whipped between buildings. The Daxamites had begun their attack and the sight crushed the air from her lungs. Above National City hovered hundreds of Daxamite ships, shooting down on innocent civilians. Below, fires had broken out, cars were piled up and the streets were torn apart as the Daxamites rained destruction down on the city.

She was taking out as many as she could but she couldn’t get close enough to any of the ships to do any real damage. The safety of the civilians was the most important thing.

“Supergirl, they’ve attacked NCPD!” her sister shouted in her ear. She dove faster, skirting buildings. As she neared, she saw Maggie with a shotgun, storm out of the front doors of the station, taking down Daxamite after Daxamite. Maggie caught sight of her, smirked, waved, and let off another shot. “Maggie's fine, Alex.”

She wished she could have said the same about Lena but she had a job to do and Lucy promised that as soon as they had a viable plan, they would get Lena back. Kara still felt weak from the amount of Kryptonite that Rhea had streamed into her body. She didn’t even know how long she had been out but it was not long enough for her to fully recover. Even so, she tried and sent a constant beam of heat vision down on a group of Daxamites below. It took a lot more energy than normal and she felt helpless watching the city she loved crumble.

There was a blur on the ground below her and she changed course. “Kal!”

He grunted, shoving a Daxamite lance out of his face. “Director Lane called. Thought you guys could use some help.”

Up ahead on the street she saw a glint of silver and recognized Guardian. Kal saw where she was looking. “Yeah, I picked someone up on the way. Was anyone going to tell me?”

Kara sped around him, blocking a blow that would have landed on the back of his head. She was holding the soldier’s arm out, straining against the force. “Maybe now’s not the best –“

“It can wait.” Kal punched the assailant in the stomach, sending him crumbling to the ground.

“Are you good here?” 

Kal nodded. “Go help James.”

Guardian was standing in the middle of the road, fending off another group of Daxamites with his shield. Supergirl landed down right next to him. She put her fists up. “Ready to do this together?”

She could see the smile in his eyes. “Hell yeah.”

With the two of them together, the Daxamites were no match.

Alex was yelling in her ear again. “Wait, Alex, what?”

James turned to look at her as she focused on the comm.

“Supergirl, we have to evacuate the DEO!”

Supergirl halted and James grabbed her arm. “Is everything okay?”

“We’re under attack,” Alex explained further. 

Her eyes widened and she shook her head at James. “It’s Alex and Winn.”

“Go. Superman and I have got this.”

She pushed off from the ground. The wind whipped her hair back from her face. “Hold on, I’m almost there.”

“There’s no time,” Alex responded, voice strained. She sounded like she was fighting back. No surprise there.

“All right, I’ll meet you outside.” She swerved around buildings, avoiding the lasers shot from Daxamite ships. She couldn’t x-ray the DEO headquarters as some of it was reinforced with lead but she saw Alex run out of the doors, onto the balcony as a part of the concrete was blasted off. She knew instantly what the plan was a smiled to herself at Alex’s complete faith. 

Alex lept off the balcony, without fear, twisting around and shooting one last shot, taking out a Daxamite soldier that had followed her. She fell fast, faster than Supergirl had anticipated but she dipped, and came up under her sister, grabbing her under the arms and pulling her to her side. “Nice move.”

“I knew you’d catch me.”

“We need to get somewhere safe. And we need a plan.”

 

The DEO moved to the alien bar to use it as their temporary headquarters. It was out of the brunt of the onslaught and offered them some reprieve and secrecy. 

J’onn was still unconscious, laid out on a mat. Winn was working on a way to get her up to Rhea’s ship but they were blind. That was the only plan they had to save Lena but that was a problem Kara was trying to ignore. It was almost impossible when Lena was the only thing on her mind.

James came back safe and sound. “Superman’s still out there. He said he’d hold it down.”

When Maggie showed up, she ran into Alex’s arms. All Kara wanted to do was have Lena with her.

Lillian showing up was the one occurrence no one had been ready for. She came for their help and to offer her own to stop the alien invasion. Everyone was skeptical as they had every right to be and Alex didn’t want to hear her out, and instead forced her to leave. She grabbed Supergirl’s arm on the way out. Lillian looked sincere enough. “I understand why you all don’t trust me. But I’m asking you to leave that in the past so that we can get back the person we both love. Please, Kara.”

Kara knew Alex was only trying to keep everyone safe but Lillian was offering them a possible solution to the plan they hadn’t solidified. It took everything Kara had to follow Alex’s lead. She trusted her sister completely and if Alex thought there was another way, a better way, then there was.

Even so, she took the phone Lillian offered.

Maggie and Guardian teamed up and went back out into the fray. Kara could see it written on Alex’s face that she wanted anything else but for Maggie to be in danger but she kissed her goodbye and watched her leave.

Lucy swore when the president showed up on a live transmission from Air Force One, obviously flying into the conflict. She was trying to talk down Rhea. Kara broke a chair when Cat Grant showed up on the president’s feed.

“She knows the president?” Kara yelled at the monitor. Kara beamed, happier than she expected to see her old boss again. She had missed Ms. Grant immensely and the woman’s snark and sass were so familiar.

But Rhea had no inclination to listen and the ship shot at Air Force One, shooting it out of the sky. When Kara got there, the president was nowhere to be seen but she could see a figure with blonde hair, falling from the sky. She had to at least save one of them. She swooped in, catching a screaming Cat Grant in her arms.

And the day just kept getting weirder. The president emerged from the wreckage, fully alive which was a surprise in and of itself.  Olivia Marsdin transforming into a Durlan was a little more than a surprise.

 

Back at the bar, Winn crept up on Kara, giggling. “Ms. Grant knows my name.”

Kara rolled her eyes and he continued. “And the president is an alien. How cool!”

“Shut up, Winn.” 

Kara, Alex, Lucy and Winn blanched and threw each other looks of disbelief as Cat Grant went into the story of her past with the president as if it was nothing. Lucy gathered them all around a table. The president started giving orders. They were to use the DEO’s positron cannon to take down Rhea’s ship. Supergirl brought up the hostages but the president said there was no other option. Kara grew defiant. “You’re saying we kill innocent civilians.”

“I believe only one of them is human and the other Daxamite. We aren’t wasting resources to save the enemy. And in war, there are casualties.”

Alex grabbed Kara’s arms to stop her from lunging across the table.

Eventually Lucy sent the president back to D.C. but Cat Grant refused to leave, wanting to be a part of the fight. There was nothing Kara could do but let her stay and secretly and selfishly, she didn’t want her mentor to leave. She felt an extra security with Cat around even if Cat didn’t know her true identity.

She cornered Alex in the bar when night fell and things became quieter. “You can’t really be thinking about this. Lena’s still up there. And Mon-El too. J’onn wouldn’t agree.”

“Of course I’m not thinking about this. J’onn wouldn’t agree but he would agree with what I did, which was appease the president. I couldn’t very well defy her orders directly. But she is right, with the positron cannon we can save the people of National City.”

“Not all of them!” Kara roared. Everyone in the bar looked at her. Alex placed a hand on her arm. “Kara, be calm, please. We aren’t going to shoot it down with Lena on board. But this is a direct order from the president and we have to follow along as closely with that as we can. Supergirl has to work with us. This isn’t one time you can’t just fix, Kara.”

Kara was sniffling, tears threatening to escape. She knew it was a low blow but she said it anyway, “Imagine if it was Maggie.”

“Yeah,” Alex said, water glistening in her eyes. “I can. And if you would just listen to me, we’re doing everything we can to find a solution.”

“We had a solution." 

Alex shook her head. “I’m sorry. Lillian isn’t an option.”

They weren’t considering the fastest option they had at their disposal and Kara couldn’t accept that. Kara shrugged her off and pushed away. “I need to get some air.”

She stormed out of the bar into the back alley, slamming the door and pulling at her hair. Her voice left her body in a cry of desperation. She yelled into the sky and kicked a trash can across the alley. 

“Supergirl.” Kara jumped in surprise, turning to see Cat Grant sitting on top of a stack of boxes. 

“Ms. Grant, what are you doing here?”

“A lot better than you, it seems.”

Kara leaned against the dumpster, nearest Cat, and looked up into the sky. She had nothing to say though, her mind too worried over Lena and too angry that things weren’t happening faster. But Alex wasn’t entirely wrong. Kara was allowed to feel that way. Supergirl, on the other hand, had one duty.

“I didn’t say this before, but thank you for saving me.”

“Of course.” She could feel Cat watching her. “So, who’s up there?”

“My girlfriend.” She closed her eyes, thinking about what the president had said. About how they had a responsibility to the city and choosing any life over another was not how the big picture problem was solved. And Alex had pretty much said that much but she knew her sister also was not going to let Lena die without at least trying to save her. “But maybe the president and Alex are right. Supergirl has the responsibility to protect everyone but all I can think about is that the woman I love is trapped on that ship and if we destroy it –“ she couldn’t keep the tremble out of her voice but in front of Cat Grant, she didn’t feel weakened – “then she’s gone forever. And I can’t lose her.”

She sighed. “I’m selfish.”

Cat Grant chuckled which was not the reaction that Kara was expecting. “That’s not selfish, Supergirl.”

As soon as Cat Grant called her by name, Kara realized that she had accidentally divulged her secret. She tried not to be shocked, hoping Ms. Grant had not noticed. But that was far-fetched. The woman before her never missed a beat; Kara wasn't entirely positive she ever had Ms. Grant completely fooled. But gratefully, she didn't mention it.

Cat made certain Supergirl was paying attention. “I left National City because I wasn’t happy and I went to find happiness. And I was surrounded by people who had nothing that we think should make us happy but that were happy regardless. And it dawned on me. Human connection is what happiness stems from. It’s not about what you do. It’s about who you love. And wanting to rescue the people you love is not selfish, it’s everything.”

Kara smiled sadly. “I’ve really missed your advice, Ms. Grant.”

“Yes, now shoo. Up, up and away. No time to lose.”

Kara took off into the sky but not before faltering in flight when she heard Cat Grant say, “That is still so hot.”

There was not a single time in which a talk with Cat had failed her. They empowered her, made her feel strong, and reinforced her faith, especially in times when it was failing fast.

Her choice was made clear, even if it meant going against the people she worked for and the orders they gave her. Teaming up with the enemy was not something she necessarily wanted to do but it was what she had to do.


	25. Chapter 25

Alex and Lucy went from “we can’t possibly ever work with Cadmus” to “let’s do it” a lot faster than Kara had expected. They both had their reservations; Kara did too. It wasn’t something they could avoid when the people involved were their enemy and completely untrustworthy. She had walked in with Lillian ready with an excuse. “I know we have to save National City but I’m not just Supergirl and I love her. I told you there had to be a way and this is it. Alex, please, I have to try. Supergirl just doesn’t leave people to die. And I made a promise once. I will not leave Lena.”

Lucy put a hand out. “Alex and I had been discussing that if they already knew how to get up there, as Lillian mentioned, then it was our best shot. We still don’t trust her though.”

“I don’t either but this is all I have.”

Alex pointed to the table where Winn, Kal, Lillian, and the cyborg, Hank Henshaw, were standing. James and Maggie were still out on the streets but they had both been reporting back and they were safe, at least as safe as they could be. “Let’s go.”

“Thank you.”

Alex looked pained. Kara knew working with the organization that had stolen her father from her was not an easy thing for Alex. But it would be in and out. As soon as they saved Lena, Cadmus would return to being their enemy.

Lillian looked Alex up and down. "I'm glad to see you're okay."

"What?" Alex spat.

"Our little rogue agent" - Lillian smiled when she saw the shock on everyone's face - "failed in his attempt to kill you, I see."

Kara could see the light go out of Alex's eyes. She was going back to that place. Kara stood in front of her, holding her face so she looked directly into her eyes. "Alex? You're fine. I'm here. You're safe."

It was getting better. Alex could be pulled out of the recollections much faster than before. She shook her head, refocusing on the present. "Cadmus was behind that?"

Lillian waved off the question. "Oh, no, no, no. Cadmus would never take credit for a botched job."

Kara took a step forward, baring her teeth. Kal was right behind her. "What did you say?"

"There was never any need for us to order a hit against Alex Danvers. It doesn't make any sense. Our organization deals with things much larger?"

"Oh, like trying to have your daughter killed."

She completely ignored Kara's comment. "He was a risk to security from the start. I never liked him."

"How did you even know about that?" Alex asked.

"A certain technology went missing from our inventory -"

"The mind block," Alex breathed out.

"-and the traces led back to him. He went completely off the grid. He's much better off in jail, if I do say so myself."

"No one particularly cares what you have to say."

Lucy pulled her back and Lillian sneered. "Are you certain about that? I believe that's the reason you brought me here."

"Let's just get back to the situation at hand."

"But Alex?"

"No, Kara, it's fine. That's over. Just leave it be," Alex pressed and Kara nodded.

Turning to Lillian, she opened her hands as a gesture for the woman to speak. “There’s a phantom zone projector in the Fortress of Solitude.”

“How do you –?” Kara started. Alex covered her hand with her own. Lillian just smiled.

Winn hesitated but spoke, “A projector sounds low tech. How would that even work?” 

“It was used to beam the prisoners straight up to Fort Rozz.” 

“Oh. Okay, then, very high tech.”

Lillian spread her hands out on the table before her. “We can repurpose it to beam us into the Daxamite spaceship.”

Lucy crossed her arms. “That’s not a terrible plan. And it’s also one we can carry out...without your help.”

“Not exactly. Hank here is the only one who can get you in undetected.”

“Cool.” Winn said. Alex shot him a look. “N-not cool.”

Alex and Lillian glared at each other until Alex finally nodded. “Fine.”

Lucy agreed silently.

“Okay then, when Supergirl’s on board,” Lucy said, “Alex can get control of the positron canon at the DEO. She can be ready to fire as soon as you get back.”

Alex would not take her eyes off Lillian. “That won’t be a problem. You need to get going.”

“And you don’t have to worry about the city, Kara. I’ll take care of it while you’re up there,” Kal offered. At the sight of Lillian Luthor, Kara thought he was going to kill her. His face contorted into a fury that Kara had never seen before. It terrified her. Now, he kept his distance from the woman, refused to look at her, and barely spoke.

Kara nodded at him, grateful. There was a tug in her heart for the city she was leaving unguarded. Knowing he was there made her able to focus on the rescue mission and that alone.

“Wait, guys” - Winn put a hand out - “You’re all forgetting Rhea. You’re not going to get by her.”

“We need a distraction.” 

“What about me?” They all turned together to see Cat Grant propping herself against the bar. “I’m the queen of distraction.”

Lucy shook her head. “This is too dangerous.”

“It’s dangerous for everyone and I don’t see that stopping you. Winslow, I need you.”

“Me?” Winn questioned, pointing to himself. He was still in awe that Ms. Grant knew his name. Kara wasn’t surprised; it was the first time she had ever gotten it right. Before she left, she hadn’t even known he existed and sat right outside her office.

Cat made a disgusted face. “You or the robot.”

Winn raised his hand. “I’ll go.”

Lucy motioned for him. “I need my agent for a moment before you steal him away.”

 

Kara was strutting out of the bar, the remote failsafe Winn had devised tightly in her hand when Alex pulled her aside. “Alex, Lillian’s waiting for us.”

“I don’t care right now.” 

Kara looked at her feet.

“What you said before, about Maggie, if she was on that ship. You were right. I would do anything I could to save her. There are no orders that could stop me from doing that. I’m sorry that you thought I didn’t think this was as important. So, you better hurry. Because I do have to shoot off the positron cannon and if you are…if you are on board” – Alex wiped at her eyes and took a deep breath – “If you are on board when I fire, you will not survive.”

“I know.”

Alex pulled her in for a hug, her voice shaky. “Please, please, Kara, just be faster than me. I know you’re fast but you have to be faster.”

Kara was holding back her tears. She couldn’t even look at Alex when she walked away because she would completely break down.

 

Kara’s skin crawled walking into the Fortress of Solitude, her enemies turned allies fast on her heels. It was wrong, them being in a Kryptonian sanctuary but it was necessary so she tried to ignore it. Lillian had informed her that though the projector should work without fail, if it didn’t, they would all be stuck in the Phantom Zone. Kara tried to imagine the three of them, floating around space forever and shuddered at the thought.

“Right now our interests are aligned but when this is over –“

“Oh, believe me. I can’t wait," Kara snapped.

The cyborg turned on the projector. Flickers of energy flashed back and forth between the two sides. It looks like controlled lightning. They stood in front of it and within seconds, were surrounded by a white light. It felt like no time had passed and they were on the ship. Cat Grant’s voice echoed down the hallways and Kara smiled, knowing that their plan was in motion.

A guard came out of nowhere and Supergirl socked him in the side of the head, taking him out with one blow. She threw him down the hall and he slid into an intersection. She heard doors opening on each side and guards ran out. She ran ahead of Lillian and the cyborg. Supergirl ducked their blows, taking out one at a time. She slammed the last one into the wall, breathing heavily.

“It’s a shame your politics are so intractable. You’re very useful.”

Supergirl rolled her eyes. “I thought my alien genetics were the problem.” 

“Just take the compliment” was not a statement Supergirl ever thought she would hear coming out of Lillian’s mouth but then again they had teamed up and infiltrated an alien ship so everything was being turned on its head.

Up ahead was the interface and Henshaw hacked in, his body working as the connector. He read the sensors. “There’s one other human heat signature.” 

“That’s my girl.” 

Kara turned to Lillian and growled, “You don’t have the right to say that.” 

“I’m here aren’t I.” 

“Yes, but I still haven’t figured out why.” 

Henshaw could trace the signature and so Supergirl followed. Her heart was beating faster the closer and closer they got to Lena. She had tried to suppress everything she was feeling since finding out that Lena had been kidnapped because she had to focus on the initial Daxamite attack as well as relocating the DEO but now that this was her sole purpose, it was hard to keep everything at bay. If she could, she would have sprinted through the halls, finding her as soon as they arrived, not caring about safety or whatever plan they had devised. But she had made a promise to Alex that she would get out of there alive so she held back and followed the designated route.

Up ahead she saw a door close, just as two people came to view on the other side. There was no doubt that it was Lena. The metal scraped the floor. “Lena!”

She pressed herself against the door. “Lena, can you hear me.” 

But she couldn't hear a response because three Daxamite soldiers appeared, on the attack. Lillian and the cyborg had taken cover, not even bothering to help her. Desperate, she didn’t waste time, taking them all out in one stroke. She watched them fall to the floor just as the door opened. 

Lena was standing by the unit that unlocked and locked the doors on the ship, pressing something into it. Mon-El was staring at Lena, with a wistful look on his face. “I can see why Kara loves you.” 

Lena looked up, seemingly surprised and Kara was taken aback for a moment. But then Lena and Mon-El saw that she was standing there. Mon-El’s eye widened but Lena smiled, her face soft and knowing. Kara let out all the air she had been holding in, rushing Lena and wrapped her arms around her. She breathed in deep, kissing the side of Lena's head. Lena stilled in her arms and she became concerned but she noticed that Lena was no longer paying attention to her, but looking over her shoulder.

“You came. With her.” Lena stated taken over by surprise and confusion. Kara couldn’t blame her; Lillian never did anything for anyone but herself. Her attempts to kill Lena were enough for no one to have expected her involvement in her rescue mission.

The cyborg looked around. “We have to go.”

They hurried down the halls, Lillian, Lena and the cyborg ahead; Kara and Mon-El brought up the rear. Then all of a sudden, the three in front disappeared and Kara pulled up short, a harsh chuckle leaving her body. “I don’t even know why I’m surprised.”

“What happened?” 

“Lillian.” Kara took Mon-El’s hand, showing him the remote Winn had made as a protective measure. “We knew we couldn’t trust her so Winn prepared for the worst.” 

Mon-El smiled, readying himself to leave. “Winn’s the man. Let’s go.” 

“I’m not going with you.”

“What? I’m not leaving you here.”

“It’s not up to you. Lena's safe now and you have to get to safety,” Kara pressed. “But no matter what she’s done, your mother deserves the chance to surrender gracefully before Alex shoots the positron cannon.”

“No she doesn’t.”

“Mon-El, I’m not arguing about this.”

“Don’t do this, Kara, please. No one will forgive me.” 

“It’s still all about you, isn’t it?”

Mon-El shook his head, clearly frustrated. “No, that’s not what I – everything comes out wrong.” 

“Just go.”

“You’re not going to get through to her." 

Kara smiled sadly. “I have to try.” 

Mon-El sighed, the sound obviously frustrated but he no longer looked like he was going to argue. “I wouldn’t have expected anything less.”

Supergirl pressed the remote and was suddenly alone. 

She didn’t know how much more time she had until Alex was forced to complete the president’s mission so she raced through the halls, looking for the throne room. She slid across the floor, into the room when she found it, coming up short of stairs. Rhea was standing at the other side, looking out the window. “Rhea. I came back to give you one last chance.” 

Rhea turned slowly. She didn’t look shocked by the turn of events. Her smile was malicious. There was no fear on her face. “Oh, how generous of you.” 

“When I was young I could look up to the sky and see Daxam amongst the stars. Everyone told me how terrible it was and I couldn’t understand that because they weren’t much different from us. They had families. People they loved. And in a few minutes, everyone on this ship will be destroyed. You have a chance to save them. Save your people while you still have time.”

Rhea put her hand over her heart in faux concern and then she snarled. “Touching speech. Sadly, wasted on the wrong audience. You really think you can tug at my heartstrings? Maybe Mon-El didn’t tell you but I get rid of those who oppose me, no matter who they are. My husband for example.” 

Supergirl’s stomach dropped. There really was no redemption in this woman. Rhea came closer, walking slowly. “This is over.”

“It doesn’t have to be.”

“Oh, I didn’t mean for me. I meant for you.”

Out of nowhere, Supergirl was hit in the head and went spinning across the room, landing hard the ground. When she looked up, she saw her cousin staring daggers, ready for a fight.


	26. Chapter 26

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I hated the whole arranged marriage storyline and before y'all yell at me about it, it's not really a part of the story. I just kept the idea in for one small cutesy encounter.

On Krypton, Kara had felt a protectiveness over Kal. When she had gotten to Earth and he was already grown, not needing her help, she felt a lack of something. Her purpose, or at least the purpose her parents imposed on her, was gone. He didn’t need her. It turned out he didn’t even want her around. So, she had been siphoned off onto someone else. Unlike Alex, she had never held that against him. She understood exactly where Alex was coming from and she wished she had been able to grow up with Kal because he was like her. They could have given each other comfort. But she also knew that even though he was young and Krypton was only a fleeting memory for him, she was a reminder of everything he could have had but lost. It wasn’t fair to either of them.

He came back into her life at the perfect time. She didn’t need him and he didn’t need her but they wanted each other and they took comfort in that. Kara pictured him becoming a part of the superfriends even though he was in Metropolis. She pictured them saving the day together. But she didn’t picture him looking at her with a hateful glint in his eye. And she definitely never pictured having to fight her own cousin.

Kal stood over her, his eyes dazed, not seeming to actually see what was right in front of him. Kara couldn’t figure out why he would be on the ship in the first place. He was supposed to be protecting the city in her stead, working with James and Maggie to try to keep the peace that was already lost. But here he was, hovering over her, in a frenzy. “Superman?”

He picked her up by the throat, landing a punch to the side of her face that sent her flying across the room, crashing into one of the many transmission screens. Sparks flew all around her. She grunted on the landing.

He stormed over and she flipped herself up from the ground, hovering slightly in the air before landing and connecting her fist to his chest. He coasted across the floor directly into the opposite wall.

Rhea was standing out of the firing zone, watching amused as the Kryptonians battled it out.

“What did you do to him!?”

“Green kryptonite isn’t the only way to harm a Kryptonian. Let’s just say some of my soldiers on the ground were armed with a different version. Shall we say, silver? It may not be able to kill as the former but mind control is just as useful to me. Of course, it was meant to be used on you. For you to have destroyed the city you have sworn to protect. I would have killed to see your face.”

Rhea cackled. Kara tried to ignore the tormenting words. 

“Kal, snap out of it!” Kara yelled to her cousin who was picking himself up off the floor.

Rhea sat on her throne. “Oh, I promise that whatever he thinks he’s seeing, it’s not you.” 

He flew at her, grabbing hold. They both crashed through the glass of the ship and spiraled out of control. It seemed forever for them to get to the ground. Kal held her at arm’s length, landing blow after blow in the air. Kara matched each. Eventually, they plummeted to Earth, both crashing into a pool around a downtown fountain.

Sirens were screaming around them, lights flashing everywhere but she was so focused that the world closed off until she could only hear her own heavy breathing and that of her cousin.

Their heat visions collided into one another, glancing off each other and spraying water everywhere. Kara was drenched, her hair sticking to her face, blocking her vision. She heard Alex call her name from somewhere off to the side and couldn’t figure out why the Daxamites weren’t gone, why Rhea’s ship was still intact, why the positron cannon had not been fired. But, there was no time for distractions when Kal was stalking her like a predator. Four steps in and she landed an uppercut, her fist pounding into his jaw. The reverberations felt like an earthquake.

Fighting her cousin was the last thing she wanted to do. She wanted to find Lena, to save her from her mother. She wanted to make sure Lucy wasn't crushed under the weight of the invasion. She wanted to make sure James was still alive and that Cat and Winn had made it back from their foray. She wanted to make sure Maggie hadn’t been hurt and that her sister was in perfect condition. Instead, she had her cousin, the one person that was most like her, trying to destroy her.

She knew it wasn’t his fault, that his mind was affected, but it still hurt, especially after Astra and Non, seeing someone wearing her house crest become her enemy when all she wanted was for them to be a family. They had been building something between them. Someone much better than the estranged cousins they had been for so long. But as he kicked her across the pool, she could feel anger boiling under her skin. It fueled her last blow, flinging Kal into the sky only to send him hurtling back down, unconscious.

The water sprayed around them but she could barely feel it. She couldn’t feel anything. Supergirl fell to her knees, head hanging, breathing heavily. Her vision was blurry and she felt like she could sleep for ages.

“Kara!” She could hear Alex splashing toward her, running through the water. Alex grabbed ahold of her. “It’s okay. I got you. I’m here.”

 

“You really did a number on him.”

Kara twirled around, her cape swinging behind her. “Oh, Lena, thank Rao!”

Kara grabbed her, pulling her into a hug. She squeezed as hard as she was allowed; she needed to feel Lena there with her, make certain she was real. With everything going on, it felt like the world stopped just for a moment and she could finally think again. “I got here as fast as I could. Thanks to Mon-El, actually.”

Lena turned and pointed across the bar where Mon-El was talking to Winn. “We were still in the Fortress when he showed up and he brought us back. He’s not completely useless like I thought.” 

Kara smiled, amused. “How could I think that when he got you back here safe?”

“I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have trusted my -“

“I shouldn’t have trusted your mother either. But I had to, to get you back. So I did and I don’t regret that.” 

“I should have trusted you about Rhea.”

Kara smiled. “You didn’t know it was her. How could you have known? You just wanted to do something good.”

Lena looked down at Kal. “Is he going to be okay?”

“We think so.” Kara fingered her mother’s necklace. “I just knocked him out. The effects of the silver kryptonite should be gone when he wakes up. We hope at least.”

Lena turned into Kara, laying her hands on the ‘S.’ There was a hint of amusement on her face. “I almost married the wrong alien.”

“What?” Kara was taken aback. Those were not the words she expected to come out of Lena’s mouth. And then she realized what Lena had actually said. “Wait. Did you just -?"

“That’s what you took out of that?”

Kara eye’s widened and she nodded. “Yeah, I think that’s pretty important.”

“Now is not the time.” Kara nodded and Lena went on. “Rhea, with whatever crazy, messed up thoughts she is living with, thought that she had found a match for her son with me."

Kara made to start over to Mon-El, fists already clenched when Lena caught her arm. “It's not his fault. I agreed to it.”

“Why would you ever do that? You knew I was coming for you.” She had to keep her voice down because Lena was not the one she wanted to yell at.

Lena stroked her cheek. “I had no doubt. But if I didn’t, Rhea threatened the children’s hospital. Those were innocent lives, Kara. I did what I had to do.”

Kara pulled her into a hug, again. “I’m sorry. Just the thought – with him – I just - I hate it.”

Lena chuckled. “I didn’t exactly enjoy the thought.”

“You’re amazing.”

There was commotion by the front door. Kara heard the click of guns and Alex’s voice, “You are not welcome here. Get out.”

Kara sped to the door, ignoring Lena’s, “Kara, wait.” She was in Lillian’s face, scowling. “You’ve done enough today. You can get out.”

“I came here to see my daughter.”

“Are you sure?” Lena questioned, voice full of spite. Kara didn’t move from her intimidating stance in front of Lillian. The woman was not getting to Lena. “ Or did you come here to blame me for what’s happening outside?”

Lillian huffed. “How could you let that woman deceive you? I taught you to be a scientist. To question everything.”

“Maybe because I question our relationship or lack thereof every day.” Lena took a few steps forward, coming in line with Kara. Kara didn’t let her pass and it looked as if Lena knew she wasn’t getting by. “You taught me to doubt myself. Look for validation elsewhere. So I did. From the first person who offered.”

“I’m sorry.”

Lena scoffed. Kara scoffed. Lucy sneered. Alex aimed her gun.

Lillian looked around, for the first time seeming nervous. “I’m serious. When you came to visit me in jail, I wanted to be a better mother but I always chose something else over you.”

“Congratulations on saying the first honest thing in your entire life.” Lena shook her head, staring at the floor. She looked like she wanted or maybe needed a drink.

“I was right, the threat was real.”

“We all knew the threat was real,” Lucy said.

“I mean the alien threat. When you were all rallying behind them to protect their rights, you let the biggest alien invasion slip right past you.” She glared at Lucy who kept her gaze for a while before turning back to her daughter. “But maybe I backed the wrong child to stop it. The transmat portal was brilliant. If you could do that with the portal, maybe you could do something with this.”

Lillian held out a metal box. “Is that from Lex’s vault?”

Kara ripped it out of her hands on hearing Lex’s name. There was no way she was going to let Lillian walk into their headquarters with a weapon fully armed and ready.

Lillian sneered at Supergirl. “He was going to use it to get rid of Superman.”

Kara’s skin prickled where it was touching the metal. She wouldn’t put it past Lillian to try to take her out even when they both knew the threat was much larger than one Kryptonian.

“And you dared to bring that here?” Lena said, the coldness in her voice piercing.

“Not to kill your beloved, Kryptonian. It needs to be adapted but it could work to end the invasion.” Lillian smiled. She was trying to be genuine but the curve of her lips was off-putting. “You could be the Luthor who saved the world.”

“She already is the Luthor who saved the world. Or have you forgotten Medusa?” Kara could list countless other times as well but it was clear Lillian didn’t think her daughter’s betrayal saved anything. Kara turned to Lena, keeping her eyes on Lillian. “Do you know what to do with that?”

“Yes, I believe so. Winn could help.”

Kara crossed her arms, pursing her lips at Lillian. “Then you can take your leave.”

 

Winn was back at the regular DEO headquarters, assessing the damage and seeing if they could move back in. Lena had gone with him to work on the mystery box Lillian had dropped off. They needed another plan in the meantime just in case that didn’t work. And besides, what Lena was thinking had to be used as a last resort. No matter what they were doing, Kara couldn’t justify killing every single Daxamite on Earth; that would exterminate an entire people and if there was another way, they would use it first.

J’onn was still unconscious but Kal woke up, confused and apologetic and came up with the idea of going to the Fortress of Solitude to find more information on the Daxamites to help come up with a useable plan. Lucy made them both get on coms in case anything went awry. The Daxamite attack had ended for the time being and nobody knew when they would attack again. Alex was pacing the bar, anxious with the lull. Mon-El and Guardian were on reserve for when they were needed while Maggie had to return to the police station.

Going through the system took longer than usual and it didn’t help that Kal couldn’t fluently read Kryptonian. Kara had to fish through all of the information by herself and only stopped when she came upon the word ‘Dakkam-Ur.’ “Wait, I remember hearing this somewhere.” 

“Dakkam-Ur? It does sound familiar.”

Kara opened up the information regarding it and let out a sigh. “This would work and it seems to be our only option.”

“No one’s going to like that,” Kal stated after she had explained.

“I know, but we have to do something.”

“Kara, are you there?”

Kara’s fingers went to her ear. “Alex? What’s going on?”

“We moved back into the DEO but there’s been a surge in energy. The Daxamite ships are recharging for another attack.”

“We’re coming.” She grabbed Kal. “We have to go fast. If we can send a message to Rhea before the attack, we may be able to stop it.”

They landed on the balcony of the DEO to a flurry of movement inside. The agents were arming for battle. Lucy and Alex met them at the doors. “We need to get a message to Rhea. Get Winn to patch us through.”

With a few clicks, Winn gave her the go. “Queen Rhea of Daxam. I, Supergirl, Champion of Earth, invoke the sacred rite of Dakkam-Ur. To meet with you in single combat before the gods. May the fate of my people rest on the fate of my life.”

There was silence for a few seconds until Rhea’s face appeared on the screens of the DEO. “Dakkam-Ur. I accept your challenge, Supergirl. We duel in four hours. Daxam assures you, it shall be your last.” 

Alex grabbed her arm. “What did you just do? The Daxamite weapons are powering down.”

“You shouldn’t have done that.” Mon-El was shaking his head in frustration.

Kal shot him a look and then nodded at her with reassurance. “She’s going to end this.”

“She’s going to die!” Mon-El shouted.

“What exactly is happening? Explain Dakkam-Ur,” Lucy said.

“It’s an ancient and sacred rite of battle by combat. I am the challenger. If I win, Rhea and the Daxamites leave Earth. If she wins, Earth is hers.”

Alex’s face turned to fear. “Kara, she has Kryptonite running in her veins. She almost killed you once."

“If she goes, they go. They are bound by ancient law. No one has to die. ”

“Except for you.” Mon-El gritted his teeth.

“She’s not going to win," Kara rebutted.

“What if she does? She will trample everyone. You can’t do this. Why not Superman? This is his fight too.”

Kal put a hand on Mon-El’s shoulder. It was a calm warning. “It’s everyone’s fight. Kara defeated me. She is the champion of Earth.”

Kara smiled at his faith in her. “I am allowed a second. I choose Kal.”

“I would be honored.”

“How are we with plan B?” Lucy turned to Winn.

He looked surprised to be on the spot. He pointed behind himself. “Oh, well Lena’s still working on it. But the basic thing is that it was designed to make the Earth inhabitable for Kryptonians. We have to change that makeup to work for Daxamites. Lena thinks she can convert it to radiate the atmosphere with lead.”

“What does that mean for humans?”

Winn made a lot of confused hand gestures before saying, “Let me go get Lena. She can make the sciencey stuff sound normal. You guys never understand what I say.”

 

“It’s harmless to humans. It’s just a trace amount. But it only takes that much to affect Daxamites. The Daxamites would be forced to leave and never return. It would be toxic to them.” Lena’s eyes glanced to Mon-El quickly. “If they stayed, they’d die.”

Kara looked over at Mon-El whose face had become stoic and stiff. “This is a last resort.”

“But it has to be ready whenever we need it,” Lucy imposed.

“And so do you,” J’onn said. There were gasps around the DEO as he walked in. Kara ran to him and he hugged her tightly.

"Thank, god," Winn let out in a breath.

Lucy looked over at him and Alex stepped back behind him. Now that he was back, who was in charge was up in the air. “Kara and Kal, you should spar. Make sure you’re ready for the fight.” 

 

Kara got Kal in a chokehold and he tapped out. She wasn’t focused; her eyes glazed. He noticed within seconds. “What’s wrong?” 

“I just…I feel like I’m on the brink of having everything I’ve ever wanted. Family, friends, a job I love, a life as a hero I could never have imagined, and Lena. If I beat Rhea, I get to keep all of that.” She swept her cape out from under her, sitting down. It felt like the weight kept piling up to a point where she couldn’t breathe. “But…I don’t know if it’s possible. To have everything you want.”

“It is. But only because you work for it.” He sat down next to her. “Whenever I fight, no matter who it is, I’m always fighting for Lois. I keep her right with me. The people you love, they’re another superpower.”

“You sound like Cat Grant.”

“Maybe she’s rubbing off on me.” They both laughed. Kal took her hand and put his hand on his chest. “Keep her right here.”

She wasn’t sure if his words made her think it was possible or if she could believe him but she wanted to. He squeezed her in a hug and though she could feel the crinkle on her forehead, knowing he would be there behind her when she faced Rhea made the weight a little more bearable.

“It’s time.” 

“I know. But I have to do something first.”

 

Kara stood in the doorway, watching Lena work for a few minutes. She was hunched over the box on the worktable, tools spread out around her. Kara couldn’t find any order in the madness. Lena was working quickly, her hands twisting at a screwdriver, trying to pry a panel off. Her bottom lip was worrying between her teeth and her eyebrows were lower over her eyes, creasing her forehead. If they weren't in the middle of the end of the world, it would have been exactly how Lena had looked during her late nights in college. “Sorry to bother you.”

Lena jumped, clutching her chest but smiling when she saw Kara. “How long have you been standing there?”

Kara didn’t respond but offered a sad smile.

“Ah, it’s _that_ time. We’re not going to do this.”

“Do what?” Kara questioned innocently, stepping into the room. She knew exactly what Lena meant. But they had to do it because Mon-El’s words still rung in her head and there was a possibility that Alex was right and the kryptonite would be too much for her to handle. It had to be fair though; Dakkam-Ur had rules that had to be followed.

“We’re not saying goodbye. We never say goodbye and this time shouldn’t be different. You kiss my forehead and I tell you to be careful.”

“And I say, ‘I always am.’”

Lena’s chin quivered. “And then I call bluff and we laugh. You fly off to save the day and come home after. So let’s do that.”

Kara hung her head. “We can’t.”

Lena poked Kara’s chest repeatedly and hard enough that she actually felt it. “Kara Zor-El, if you come back here alive, I’m going to be so mad at you for making me go through this.”

Lena’s head fell onto Kara's chest, pleading, “Please come back here alive.”

Kara didn’t want to promise her anything. If she didn’t come back, she already broke the promise she made Lena to never leave her. She didn’t need to be breaking any more promises. Before finding Lena, Kara had tried to remove her mother's necklace and Alex had given her one look, shook her head, wiped a tear from her eye and whispered, “We’ve already been through this. Too many times. No matter what, I do not lose you.”

She had been given a direct order and despite her will to follow it, she couldn’t leave Lena without a goodbye when the outcome was questionable. She had said with confidence that she could win because that’s what she had to say. She had to appease her friends and family. And if she didn’t say it out loud, she couldn’t quite make herself believe that it was a possible outcome.

She’d already seen one world destroyed; she refused to see another.

She didn’t want to say "goodbye" aloud. She didn’t think her voice could handle speaking at all so she pulled Lena into a tight hug and then pressed their lips together urgently. It felt like it might be the last time. Lena pushed her away. “That doesn’t feel right.”

“I’m sorry,” she replied, pulling Lena’s head close and pressing her lips against her forehead and keeping them there until she knew she was running out of time.

Kara felt something cold press into her hand. She looked down, finding a remote between Lena’s hand and her own. “You should be the only one to make the final decision. But Kara, I’m begging you. If all is lost, please make it.”

Kara nodded, turning out of the room. She didn’t think she would survive one last look at Lena.

“I love you, Kara.”

And she was right. The words almost killed her because she had made the choice that this would not be the moment she said them. So instead, she paused briefly in the doorway so that at least Lena would know that she heard, and then she walked away without another word or glance.


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's so close to being over. I'm really gonna miss this one.

Nothing was fair with the Queen of the Daxamites and thinking that she would abide by the rules of the Dakkam-Ur was Kara’s first mistake. Fighting Rhea was almost as bad as fighting Kal, except this time, she wanted to be landing the punches. Each one was a quake. And Rhea, despite all her regalness, knew how to fight back. This fight was for the Earth, for her home, and she was not backing down until one or both of them were no more.

She slammed into one of the units on the roof. Rhea had grabbed her cape and flung her back. She was in the middle of a storm of sparks and she was dazed but saw Kal step forward. She held up a hand. “No! I’ve got this!”

She came back strong, so strong that Rhea fell to the ground, seemingly down for the count. Assuming that was her second mistake. The queen began to laugh as laser beams shot down around them, showering the rooftop and scorching the concrete. Kara’s focus drew to the skies where Daxamites ships had plummeted closer to the ground and were on the attack. They were everywhere and they didn’t seem to have an end. She flipped around to Rhea, surprised, though she shouldn’t have been. Honor meant nothing to the woman anymore if it meant she could lose what she wanted. Rhea’s plan was to rebuild the city from the ground. She was never going to leave National City untouched; it was all a lie. Kal had already taken off to fight back. It may have left Kara without backup but they both knew what was important.

Kara ran to the edge of the building, looking down. She knew everyone she cared about was down there, fighting against the invaders. She knew they were all in danger but she couldn’t let that pull her concentration. If she ended Rhea, they were saved. She turned back and stalked Rhea around the rooftop. The woman was tired but was taunting her all the same. Kara now knew she wasn’t safe from anything. 

Rhea’s skin pulsed with a green undertone and Kara clutched at her stomach, her knees weakening, sending her to the ground. Rhea held a hand out, the kryptonite in her fingertips leading her strides. Kara didn’t know if she could stand again. Everyone was staying out of her head; they all had their own jobs to do so now that Kal was gone, she was really alone.

Someone grabbed her by her shoulders and slammed her to the ground, breaking through the structure and into the building. Without much effort in her weakened state, she was thrown, crashing through wall after wall and not able to stop herself. She was back through the roof before she could find her surroundings and slammed to the ground. She felt the concrete split around her and coughed as the air was forced from her lungs and the dust rose around her. Rhea had a rough hand on her throat, holding her in place. She couldn’t touch the woman without crying out.

Rhea let her up to toy with her but Kara couldn’t stop fighting. Every punch was parried. Every kick almost sent her stumbling to the ground. And with the added effect of the Kryptonite, her hits lacked any power. Rhea landed a punch to her stomach, pulling her in close. “It doesn’t end here. I will destroy city after city until your whole world is gone.”

She threw Kara to the ground but a new strength was erupting. Rhea threw a punch and Kara grabbed the fist in her hand. She squeezed, using it to pick herself up. Rhea looked caught off guard. Kara’s body was seizing with the effect of the kryptonite and her words were shaky but forceful. “This is my home. And _no one_ gets to take that from me. Ever. Again." 

Kara wound up, knocking her fist into the side of Rhea’s head. She kicked out, sending the woman flying backward, slamming into wood and metal casing. The woman was motionless. Kara was laughing, crazed, when Alex sounded in her ear for the first time. She breathed out a sigh of relief that her sister was safe. “Supergirl, they’ve locked onto every school, hospital and municipal building in the city. They’re going to destroy everything.” 

Kara spun around, scanning the city. This wasn’t supposed to happen. She wasn’t supposed to have to do this. The plan was to defeat Rhea and they would leave the Earth in peace. She shook her head violently, water coming to her eyes. It was a backup that was never supposed to be needed. There had to be another way. 

A ship flew near their building, locking on to an adjacent one. It was the children’s hospital. Her head was wracked with voices.

Lucy saying, “There are two Danvers in my life. And that’s how it’s always going to be.”

James telling her, “I believe in you. We all do. And I believe that you’ll come back.”

Winn rambling on in the only way he knew how to deal with the situation, “Listen, when you get back, you get a new suit. No argument. I’m making an upgrade.”

Alex’s voice rung out, “I do not lose you.”

And Lena pleading with her, “Please, come back here alive."

No matter what Cat Grant said about being selfish, how did five people justify eradicating an entire population? Rhea talked about destroying Earth so how would destroying the Daxamites make Kara any different from her? It was the same decision and it was a decision she could not and would not make. Supergirl never chose who lived or died. She saved people.

“There has to be another plan,” she said so quietly that only the com would pick it up.

“There’s no time, Kara!” Lucy yelled. “They are going to obliterate the city.”

“Kara,” Alex’s voice was soft but urgent, “If it’s easier, I’ll make it an order.”

“And I’ll disobey. This is not going to be on you. This is not going to be on anyone because it’s not happening.” She retorted.

She heard commotion on the other end of one of the lines and voices, “You talk to her then because apparently, you’re the only one that can get through to her.”

“Kara?”

“Oh, this is just playing dirty.” Kara’s voice was quivering.

Lena sighed. “I’m not going to tell you what to do.”

“That’s exactly what you’re going to do, Lena,” Lucy cut in.

“I’m not," Lena was adamant, "because I already told you it was your decision. But I think you need to know what happens when you hit that button.”

“All the Daxamites die. It’s pretty clear.”

“The Daxamites on the ground will. If their ships don't beam them back up, it will be instantaneous. The ones in the ships will have enough time to exit the atmosphere before it starts affecting them. I know it’s not what you wanted but it’s better than what you were expecting. That’s what your decision will do.”

“Still kill hundreds,” Kara stated simply.

“Yes.” Lena wasn’t trying to sugarcoat it or lie to her about what would really happen. But the information was new; she hadn't known exactly how the box would work.

“It’s ready whenever you are.”

“I’m never going to be ready for this.”

“No one’s asking you to. They’re just asking you to save them.”

“This isn’t just you, Kara,” Alex’s voice came on, “Everyone here is one hundred percent behind you. No one was ready for this to be happening. When would they be?”

Alex paused and Kara waited, knowing there was more. “But this is the plan that saves the most lives. That’s Supergirl’s job.”

“What are you going to do now, Supergirl? Die with the earthlings?” Rhea goaded. She still wasn’t standing, the last kick knocked her hard.

“Together?” There was a resounding chorus of “always” as everyone on the com line gave their support. Her hand was shaking and she could feel the heat behind her eyes. She turned to Rhea, one last time. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry that it had to end this way and that we couldn’t end this peacefully. I’m sorry that Krypton’s destruction became Daxam’s destruction. I’m sorry that that couldn’t have brought us together somehow. And I’m sorry that you couldn’t open your eyes and see the better world that you could have made.”

Kara swallowed hard. “But I’m not sorry that I’m doing what I have to do to save my home.”

“On three.” Alex prompted. Everyone was there with her in that moment. With their voices, the shaking diminished. With their support, she could see that Rhea never wanted to change. With their hope, she knew that no matter how hard this choice was, that it was their only option.

“One.” She pressed the button.

 

She landed down in a field. J’onn, Kal, and Mon-El were already there, a familiar pod ready to go. Mon-El was strapping himself in when she ran over. “I’m sorry, Mon-El.”

“I don’t want to leave.”

She nodded. They had never been on the best of terms but that didn’t mean she couldn’t feel his pain. Being forced off yet another planet that was becoming home. No future in sight. No idea where he would end up. It wasn’t something she would have wished on anyone but he needed to leave soon or he would meet the same fate as his mother. All of the Daxamite ships had already cleared Earth’s atmosphere; he’d be the last to go. “I know, I know. You were only trying to make this your home as much as I was. We never got along but that doesn’t mean I’m not sorry that you have to go through this.”

He was starting to wheeze and Kal and J’onn were stepping away from the pod. She squeezed his arm. “I hope you truly learn what it means to be good. And I hope that you find a home, wherever that may be.”

“Safe travels.” Kal spoke up from behind her. J’onn nodded and Mon-El returned it. The pod closed around him, taking off from the ground. It sped off and disappeared into the sky.

Kara stared after it for a long time until J’onn’s footsteps shook her reverie. “I have this sinking feeling in my chest. Like nothing’s going to be okay for a very long time.” 

In his way, J’onn kept silent and that was all she needed. She smiled sadly. She didn’t want anyone’s explanation or to hear statements of support. The weight hadn’t dissipated but changed form. Instead of crushing her beneath it, it had spread out, making every part of her body heavy. But J’onn and Kal were waiting for her expectantly and so being alone wasn’t an option at the moment. She shook it off, as best as she could, and put on the confident face of Supergirl. “All right, I guess it’s back to the DEO.”

 

Everyone was safe. James was beaten up and a little worse for wear. Maggie looked like she was about to fall over from exhaustion and was being fussed over by Alex, who had not seen any of the fighting but had been put in charge of headquarters during the invasion. Lucy was working, as usual, rifling through papers with another agent. Winn was excitedly talking to Kal. About what, Kara didn’t know, she wasn’t interested enough to listen in. To her surprise, M’gann was in the DEO. She had apparently shown up to fight against J’onn and brought a whole team of White Martians with her. The fact that they fought together on the same team gave Kara a little more hope that everything that had happened wasn’t for nothing. Two enemies trying to seek forgiveness; it was an encouraging story.

Kara leaned against the balcony, looking into the sky. She couldn’t quite wrap her mind around the celebrating. The citizens of National City were going crazy in the streets, partying. And so was most of the DEO. They were cheering and having a good time. They clapped for her when she arrived. It made her nauseous.

She felt a presence next to her but she didn’t feel like speaking so waited for him to speak first.

“I have to get home.”

“I know.”

“You okay?”

“Of course. I did the right thing,” she said skeptically.

“I think it goes far beyond the right thing. I couldn’t have done it, Kara.” Kal was doing his best to reassure her but “right thing” was far from what she thought the decision could be considered.

“You don’t have to try to make me feel better.”

“I’m humbled by you. You are so much stronger than me. Stronger than I ever will be.”

“Thank you.” His words fell flat in her ears. They meant nothing. It didn’t matter if she was stronger than him. It didn’t matter whether he could have made the choice or not. What mattered was that she had made it and whether it was right or wrong was never going to be clear. It would be a gray area until it drove her mad. But, she smiled to save him the trouble. “Say hi to Lois for me.”

It did the trick because he smiled and nodded at her, taking off to return to Metropolis. 

As much as she wanted him to be the only one who came to talk to her, she knew that wouldn’t be the case. It didn’t take long for Alex to find her. But at least she didn’t hold out false hope. She didn’t try to rationalize the situation. It was over and they both knew that; Alex wasn’t going to spend time on it. Instead, she offered support for moving forward. “There was a time earlier this year when I felt broken. But you weren’t having it. You forced your way into my home, put your arms around me, and said ‘I’m proud of you.’ That didn’t make me feel any better at the time and I’m not trying to make you feel better now. I can see it on your face that you don’t want to feel better. But hold onto that, okay? I am so proud of you.”

Kara let the words sink in but she didn’t have anything to say. Proud wasn’t the right word either. But she didn't hold that against Alex. Her sister was doing exactly what she always did and Kara could only be grateful for that. “Do you want me to stay over tonight?”

“No.”

“Okay,” Alex said, “But just know that in a couple days if the answer to that is still ‘no,’ you don’t get a choice anymore and I will break down your door. I’ve done it before and can do it again.”

Alex turned to leave and paused, resting her hand on Kara’s arm. “You have someone else in there who would probably like to come out here.”

Kara clenched her teeth and looked away. “I don’t think I want her too.”

She couldn't justify why she felt that way. But there was something in her that felt like it was on a precipice, like one more tiny poke and the crack would become a canyon. And seeing the one face that might have been the only one to bring comfort, seemed to Kara like an easy way out. She shouldn't be comforted. She should feel the weight of her decision and the guilt that was bubbling up. She couldn't let herself forget or let anyone talk her into believing that her decision was okay. She had to live with it. She had to overcome the burgeoning doubt and anxiety. And whether she ever got to a point where she could accept the decision she made or not, she would remember.

“Okay. And she’s going to understand that. And she’s going to give you space.”

Kara took a deep breath, feeling the stutter in her chest that meant the tears were coming. Alex’s eyes glistened the same way.

“Whatever it is you are going through and I know it’s a lot, whatever happens - look at me Kara” – Kara turned to face Alex, her sister staring at her intently – “Never let her go.”

And before she could take off, and escape to be alone, someone took Alex’s place.

“What’s with that frown?” Kara couldn’t expect anything less than abrasive from Cat Grant. “The city has been saved so why do you look like that?”

“At what cost?”

“Oh no, no, no, no,” Cat said with a flippant shake of her wrist. “Listen to me here, Supergirl. You are going to feel this but you cannot let it take over or win. The thing that makes you strong is that you have the guts to be vulnerable. You have the ability to feel the depths of your emotion and know you will walk through it to the other side. Yes, you have hit an obstacle but you will soar right over it.”

And then Cat Grant walked away like that fixed everything and was the only thing that needed to be said. Kara stared after her, incredulous, because to some extent, it was.


	28. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for going on this ride with me. Thank you so so so so much for reading and giving kudos and commenting! I've loved it all :)

Her hair blew in the wind coming through the rolled down windows. Her cheek set against the door, soaking up the last of the yellow rays. She hummed contentedly, squeezing the hand she was holding. “Are you falling asleep on me?”

Kara looked to Lena who was smiling, teasing. The light green of her eyes glinted in the sun and her hair whipped around her face. Sunglasses were perched on top of her head. She had removed them, saying it was nice to see the true colors of the sunset.

They were driving away from National City, away from everyone they knew, away from the place where they were supposed to be certain people. Kara didn’t answer and her smile disappeared. 

“Are you okay?”

Kara shook her head; it was subtle but enough. “Just thinking. About everything. About what could have been the end.’

It's was pretty much the only thing she had thought of since.

Lena nodded, bringing their clasped hands to her lips. “You, Kara Zor-El, are the strongest woman I have ever met. You went up against the impossible and overcame. And now you feel like you’ve hit a roadblock but,” – Lena smiled – “nothing can stop you.”

Kara looked out at the moving coastline. “You sound like my sister and Ms. Grant.”

“I’m in good company then.” Lena’s tone was light. They were both silent. Kara was having trouble putting words to the enormity of what she was feeling in the aftermath. There wasn't a way to describe it. It had taken a few days, maybe more. The days after were such a blur it was hard to remember what happened when. But Alex had been true to her words and Kara almost had to get a new front door.

On the fourth day Lena didn't come home, Kara realized her mistake. Pushing people away was the opposite of what she should have been doing. She wasn't getting better; she was getting worse when all she had were the memories and her horrible thoughts. And she still wasn't okay with everything that had happened but there seemed to be a small spark in the dark hole she felt stuck in. It was small and unreachable but it was hope.

“Isn’t there something…endings are really just new beginnings.”

Kara wasn’t sure that fit for Earth being taken over but she understood Lena’s intentions. 

“That seems cheesy for Lena Luthor,” Kara teased.

Lena shrugged her shoulders. “I never said I believed it.”

Kara leaned over and pecked her on the cheek. “When I talk about Krypton, I always mentioned how matches weren’t made for love and I told you once that that’s not what this is. But I didn’t actually…I don’t know.”

Lena’s mouth fell open and she looked away from the road briefly. “Are you saying what I think -?”

“I love you, Lena Luthor.


End file.
